Hethersett at the Turn of the Millennium - The year 1999
Introduction - written December 31st, 1998
To call Hethersett a village could be construed as something of a misnomer.
In years gone by it might well have been classed as a town. Today, however, despite an increasing population it continues to have a "village feel" despite being home to about 5,000 people.
It is nevertheless a rather sprawling village situated about seven miles south of the city of Norwich and three miles north of the thriving market town of Wymondham (pronounced Windham).
The heart of the village features numerous activities and outside of the centre it spreads out in all directions to cover a considerable area.
Friday January 1st, 1999
New Year's Day always seems to bring a laid back feel to the village with few cars about, but numerous people out for morning and afternoon strolls.
Today dawned bright and relatively warm. The village was bathed in sunshine and birdsong could be heard.
A walk round the village shows just how large an area it covers and to gain the most from a walk it is important to pick a particular area and stick to the route.
Starting from home we walked along St David's Road before cutting through to Priory Road via Firs Road. St. David's Road is essentially a middle class residential road stretching for about one-third of a mile from New Road to Firs Road. It is a cul-de-sac at the top end with just a pedestrian cut through.
Most gardens are well cared for. It is impossible to walk along the road without hearing the chorus made by the crows from the trees behind the properties nearest to the main road. The birds nest in massive trees and are capable of making a very loud noise indeed.
By using the cut through from Firs Road to Priory Road one misses Woodside First School which is situated on the left. This route also bypasses Woodcote Housing Complex for the elderly.
Priory Road consists of mainly medium sized houses and winds down to the old Norwich Road. Close to the end is a wooded section which runs adjacent to the garden of the King's Head Public House.
On New Year's Day, 1999, the path alongside this stretch of road is partially overgrown and certainly work is needed to tidy up this area.
The Old Norwich Road is now extremely quiet. Looking across the fields the former A11 is just a few yards away. This road has also been by-passed, thus helping the peace and solitude of the village.
There is no better way of spending a warm summer's evening than in the garden of the King's Head. But, this being winter, we must be on our way. Suffice it to say that the King's is a quintessential English Pub.
As we walk the King's Head is on our left and shortly after we come to Norfolk Fire Headquarters (Whitegates). Crossing Cann's Lane we come to Harvey's Garage where petrol prices always seem to be higher than in the surrounding areas (the main reason I have never filled my car up there). The garage also repairs vehicles.
On the right is Hethersett Antiques and the March Hair salon. Both are small modern brick buildings. On the left at the junction with Queen's Road is the Queen's Head Public House. A number of years ago Hethersett boasted three public houses, but the former Greyhound in Henstead Road is now a private house. Over the past few years the Queen's Head seems to have lost some of its popularity.
Turning left into Queen's Road, the village middle school is on the right. Over 250 children aged from eight to 12 attend this historic school.
A few yards further on is the village business centre and then the village social club. A small road leads down on the right to the High School complex which also includes the scout and guide headquarters. At the beginning of this road is the village library which opens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays but which had its opening hours cut at the end of last year.
Queen's Road continues towards the heart of the village (although on today's tour we will ignore this area) where it turns into Great Melton Road.
Today we turn right into Henstead Road. At the junction of Great Melton and Henstead Roads is Grinders coffee shop. Rather strangely Hethersett is the national headquarters for Grinders. This becomes more understandable by the fact that the proprietor is a local man.
Opposite Grinders is the former Post Office which is at present a charity shop, but which is up for sale. The shop occupied by Grinders itself has had a number of identities over the years. I can remember it as a newsagents and also a cross stitch shop.
Henstead Road leads to open countryside going towards Little Melton. As you walk along, the small Baptist Church is on the right and the former Greyhound Public House on the left just before the Church Rooms which are also known as the Old Village Hall and which many years ago were one of two schools in the village.
These rooms are still available for hire despite the building of the new village hall in Back Lane which is off to the right further along Henstead Road.
On today's tour we walk halfway down Back Lane towards the modern Steepletower Development, but double back before reaching it. At this point the new village hall is on our left. It was built as part of the agreement with the developers of Steepletower.
A short way further along on the opposite side of the road is the Jubilee Youth Club (a rather dull standard rectangular brick building). The playing fields of the high school are at the back of the youth club.
Doubling back we now have the village hall on our right. This time we cross Henstead Road and go down Grove Road. This again ends in a cul-de-sac with a pedestrian cut through to a rough pathway leading to what is known as the Parish Pit. On this particular day, the mud makes walking difficult and it is quite tiring.
Winding through to Lynch Green we pass some of the most historic and exclusive properties in the village. These include Cedar Grange. Eventually we are into Lynch Green and at the junction with Great Melton Road.
This time we turn left and pass the doctors' surgery on our left. On the right is the village butchers and chemists and the dental surgery. A few yards further on is the Methodist Church and opposite this is another walkway leading towards the village's Memorial Playing Fields.
One of the features of the village is its accessibility for pedestrians who can take advantage of many of the short cuts not available to vehicles.
We walk through this cut, being careful not to slip on the wet compacted leaves. On our left is the Memorial Field which, on this bright New Year's Day, is empty!
And so we return via Firs Road and St. David's Road. A wander such as this prompts many thoughts and memories.
On returning home we find the latest copy of the Good News Parish magazine has been delivered. It covers Hethersett, Little Melton and Great Melton and costs just 20p each month.
Businesses advertising in the January 1999 edition give an insight into the kind of activities that are going on in the village as we come to the end of the 20th century.
They include the following: Hethersett Dental Laboratories (established 1972), R.A Foreman and Son Builders, G. J. Fulcher Hethersett Tailoring Service, ABB Cabs Taxi Service, Hethersett Hall Residential Home, Sophie Emms Florists, R.E Burrell Builders Contractors, Aubrey Hammond Cabinet Maker, Hethersett Cattery and Picture Framing Service (a strange combination), Ronald Wales Chiropodist, Jean's Executive Cars, The March Hair, Hethersett Social Club, Yvonne's School of Dance, Hethersett Old Hall School, Hethersett Business Base, Hethersett Village Hall, Barry Foster Decorator, Chris Lewer Electrical Contractor and Harvey's Autos.
Topics featured in the magazine include reports from the Rector, the Rev Di Lammas; the Guild, Good Companions, Senior Citizens, Mothers Union, Church Mission Society, Village Millennium Group, Hethersett Society, Tuesday Club, Village Hall, Happy Circle, Jigsaw Library, Horticultural Society, Hethersett Sports Group, Parish Council, Jubilee Youth Club, Workers' Education Association, Women's Institute, Roman Catholics and Methodists.
Coming diary events include Hethersett's annual pantomime which will be held in the new Village Hall from Saturday 16th to Saturday 23rd January, a slide show of Old Hethersett on Saturday 6th March and Hethersett Church's Summer Fete on Saturday July 3rd.
News topics that promise to continue through the next few months include: The formation of a sports group committee to discuss facilities in the village and the continuing shortage of helpers at the Jubilee Youth Club.
In her address, the rector bemoans the fact that the news of Jesus Christ and God are more often used as swear words or exclamations of surprise. The lack of children attending church is another worrying factor along with the real meaning of the millennium.
No other person (Jesus) has had such influence on the human race...And yet if we did a survey in these villages I guess that the majority of the population would not link the Millennium celebrations in any way to Jesus Christ.
Sunday January 3rd Wet and windy.
Hethersett is bathed in a drabness with rolling thunder clouds overhead and incessant early morning rain.
The village boasts a thriving youth football set-up which plays on Sundays. The club runs an adult team but primarily youth sides at under-11, under-12, under-13, under-15 and under-17. In addition there is a girls under-13 team. So far this has been one of the most successful seasons in the club's history with the Under-11s, Under-12s, Under-15s and Under-17s all in with a chance of winning their sections of the Norfolk Youth Combination.
Today it was the turn of the Under-15s to play on the Memorial Playing Field. Owing to the number of teams run, the club also uses pitches at the Middle School, the High School and Little Melton.
The Memorial Playing Field is tucked away in the centre of the village and is still a focus for sport in the village with bowls, football, cricket and cycle speedway all featured during the year. Sadly the field no longer seems to play host to impromptu kick abouts between fathers and sons. Obviously this kind of activity has been lost with computers now more of an attraction.
The rain made the pitch more akin to a bog. A late decision was made to go ahead with the game after a considerable amount of emergency drainage work had been undertaken.
The Under-15s won 3-2 against Norwich team Waterloo. It was their seventh win in 12 games and the team consisted of: James Sillett, Iain Hill, Daniel Ganley, Ben Harris, Chris Colwell (captain), Nick Appleton, Steven Beck, Matt Steward, Ryan Breeze, Andrew Milne and Robert Mitchell. Substitutes were Chris Brownbridge, Matt Musson and Chris Smedmor.
The whole question of sport in the village is something of a hot potato at present. A meeting in December was held to try and bring all sports clubs together to ensure the best facilities. Many people, myself included, believe that the best use is not made of existing facilities and that there is too much acrimony between a number of the groups in the village.
Tuesday January 5th
The New Year has brought some very unseasonal weather. It is more like Spring than winter with temperatures in the mid 50s Fahrenheit.
The problem is that illness is rife and many people in the village have been suffering from flu and colds seem to hang on.
Picked up my photographs of the village taken on New Year's Day and they are unique in as much as there are no motor vehicles to be seen. It is only on New Year's Day that this is possible - the rest of the year the village seems to be full of cars. Indeed there have been many complaints over the years about parents driving children to schools and making the traffic problems worse.
Few people seem to walk and that must be a tremendous contrast to the village of a few decades ago.
The village has set up an official archive group to record the millennium and I have been invited to join this. The plan is to produce a record of the village in the year 2000.
Wednesday January 6th
The warm weather continues. Work prevents most people from moving about the village during the week and I'm no exception. Away from the village it is difficult to visualise life going on.
The evening brought a visit to the village social club for a football club meeting. The club is quite an extensive building just across from the library. On this particular evening myself and my eldest son Chris joined the club for a modest fee of £5.
Activities available include pool, snooker, table tennis and darts. On this particular evening there was a ladies darts match in progress. We left the social club to find it raining heavily.
Thursday January 7th
To get rid of the flu epidemic we need some cold weather. It is promised for the weekend. Today brought just more rain. It also brought my first visit of the year to the Middle School where I am chairman of governors.
The school is an amalgam of an original school house, now used largely as a store room, and a more modern building.
I have been a governor for about seven years and chairman for two. I was originally elected as a parent governor and continue in that capacity despite no longer having any children at the school.
Today I love the feel and atmosphere of the place. Over the past few years governors have been given increased powers. We are expected to run the finances, hire and fire stafff and bring about improvements. Staff are under more and more pressure from government initiatives and ever-changing demands and increased paperwork.
I see the function of the governing body as supporting the Head and staff, whilst leaving the day to day running to the professionals. It is slightly worrying to realise that lay people such as myself with no educational experience can have such a say in running a school.
Today's visit was for a meeting of the publicity and public relations committee. The function of this is to promote the school both internally and externally. The meeting goes smoothly. The school is now running well under the leadership of Head Tim Strugnell.
Friday January 8th
This evening brought the inaugural meeting of the Millennium Archive Committee which I have been asked to join. The committee will be providing a record of the village in the year 2000 and the preparatory work will be done throughout the year.
An interesting historical point touching on the village came to light today in the form of an Internet site set up to commemorate the 450th anniversary of Kett's Rebellion.
Land Owner Robert Kett joined the common people in their fight against the fencing in of common land. He led a march to Mousehold Heath in Norwich and fought against government armies. Kett, and his brother William, were eventually arrested and Robert Kett was hanged from Norwich Castle.
Now 450 years later Kett is a local hero and his home town of Wymondham will be holding major celebrations in the summer. Kett's Oak, the tree from which the march allegedly set off from is in the parish of Hethersett and on the former A11. I understand that today it is filled with concrete and is held up by fencing. It would normally have been pulled down years ago but is now of historic value.
One of Kett's sworn enemies was landowner John Flowerdew who lived in Hethersett. It is interesting to note that one of the newer roads in the village is named Flowerdew Close. I'm not sure whether that comes from a wish to record history or from support on behalf of the planners to commemorate a rather unpopular man.
Saturday January 9th
Today was a sad one for the village and the youth football team in particular. In the early hours of the morning one of the Under-17 players was killed. He was walking home to Mulbarton (a village about five miles from Hethersett). The boy (Lee Thompson) had played football in the village for about 6 years.
That made for a tragic day. It was summed up by a drive home from lunch at the King's Head where the gathering storm clouds summed up the dreadful news.
The weather was indeed a mixture of sun and winter showers although the overriding feeling was one of despair and darkness.
Sunday January 10th
A frosty start was followed by bright sunshine. The village looked attractive. Visited the spot where Lee Thompson was killed and it was an unspeakably sad visit that illustrates how fragile life is and how much we should value where we live and the people we share our lives with.
More bouts of unseasonal weather were recorded as the month progressed. A few mornings of frost were countered by periods of mild weather. Late afternoons tended to be dark and dank with the surrounding countryside stark in its flatness.
In the depths of winter the village still has a rather sleepy feel about it. The elderly stay indoors as much as possible although any trip back to the village during the day illustrates what a thriving and busy community there is.
Wednesday January 20th
A sad day for many youngsters and others in the village as we travelled to Mulbarton for Lee Thompson's funeral service.
It was an upbeat celebration of his life but that couldn't detract from the huge sadness of the occasion as he was buried in the churchyard.
At the turn of the Millennium Lee would have been just 18.
The youth football set-up at Hethersett was well represented and again it was decided to hold a minute's silence before Sunday's game.
Thursday January 21st
Over the past 30 years Hethersett has had a village pantomime which not only provides an excellent two and a half hours entertainment but also raises money for local charities.
The panto is held over a period of a week and plays to packed houses at the new Village Hall. I can remember cramming into the old Church Hall in Henstead Road where the tiny stage and cramped conditions made it a real village experience.
At first the pantomime group were reluctant to leave this home but eventually moved to the grander surroundings in 1996.
Some people have been involved in the pantomime since its start and most, if not all, have been written by Duncan Pigg.
Pantomime is a curiously British entertainment. There are just a few storylines with recurrent themes and dance, song, drama, farce and comedy all mixed in.
Since 1970 about £24,480 has been donated from pantomime profits to various organisations. In 1998 £2,200 was divided between the Village Hall, Church Hall, Parish Church Organ Fund, Middle School Swimming Pool, STEPS Project (Autistic Society), Jubilee Youth Club, Methodist Church, Woodside First School Library, Talking Newspaper for the Blind and Accident Rescue Service.
Since its formation the Panto group has performed Sleeping Beauty, Dick Whittington, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aladdin and Cinderella four times; Beauty and the Beast, Babes in the Wood and Mother Goose twice; and Red Riding Hood, Sinbad the Sailor, Robin Hood and Snow White once each.
The 1999 pantomime was Jack and the Beanstalk and took place from Saturday 16th January to Saturday 23rd January.
The starring roles were taken by Deb Wilson (Jack), Lloyd Parfitt (Simple Simon), Barry Foster (Widow Lovejoy), John Freeman (King Harry), June Harrison (Queen Bess), Amy Foster (Princess Rose), Gary Thornton (Giant Rumbletum). The scenery was excellent and very colourful.
Advertisers in the pantomime programme included: Barry Foster decorator, Attractions Unisex Hair Salon, Chris Lewer electrical contractor, King's Head Public House, Sylvia Parfitt Chiropodist, Edwards Pharmacy, Kirsty Lansdell private piano tuition, North Heigham Sawmills Ltd, Sophie Emms Florist, Roger Smith Insurance Consultants.
Friday January 22nd
A drive home from the University of East Anglia leads across country lanes and past Norwich City Football Club's training complex at Colney and onto the old A11. Today the skies were black, but there were indications of the days lengthening again.
Our football club has cancelled its Easter trip to Holland though lack of interest.
The weekly newspaper - the Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury (for which I was once sports editor) ran a story this week on the village pantomime, along with news that Hethersett Old Hall School has secured a £30,000 award from the Wolfson Foundation towards computers and educational software.
Saturday January 23rd
Saturday always brings car parking problems to the village. Scarcely anybody seems to walk into the centre and the problem is a lack of car parking space for all the vehicles. The result is that many drivers leave their vehicles illegally parked on double yellow lines.
Today the sun threatened to come out but never really made it and in the evening the rain came down.
One hundred years ago the village must have been much quieter and more peaceful than today. Certainly there were no computers. Through the wonders of modern science we now receive electronic mail (e-mail). This evening I received correspondence from a gentleman whose friend has just moved into property in Back Lane. He is interested in village history and in particular village ghosts. It is an interesting subject and worth some research.
Sunday January 24th
Sundays in the village are alive with youngsters playing football. Today was bright and dry until the evening when wind and rain took over.
Hethersett Athletic Under-17s dedicated their afternoon match to the memory of Lee Thompson. They beat North Lynn 1-0 in a very hard match. There were celebrations and even relief all round at the end.
Monday January 25th
On New Year's Day I took a photograph of Hethersett Middle School. It was rather unrealistic. The gates were shut and there were no children.
In reality the school is a thriving centre for village life. It has a swimming pool used regularly by a variety of groups and the hall and even classrooms can all be hired.
The school has a number of archive diaries which go back into the last century. One of these refers to the girls section. I was amazed at the trivia included. They seemed pre-occupied with darning and sewing and very little else. I don't think today's pupils would get away with that.
With over 250 pupils the school is now of moderate size for a middle school. The day to day running is down to an excellent staff led by Head Tim Strugnell. Behind the scenes the finance and running of the school is down to the board of governors.
The school consists of four year groups ranging from years four to seven. It can take a maximum of 272 pupils. Some years are at present full, others have vacancies.
Parental choice means that parents can now pick which school to send their children to. Sadly this can mean that at times people move into the village and are not able to send their children to the local school where classes may already be full. This to my mind is not acceptable, but neither is the thought of class sizes growing to unreasonable levels without any control.
The middle school is at present planning a programme of building replacement and improvements designed to take it into the 21st century.
It is only rarely that I have a Monday in the village. Today was such a rare occasion. The village has a slightly strange feeling about it on a weekday. It turned out to be very busy indeed today, but those moving about were either elderly picking their pensions up or mothers with young children. On a weekend walk round the village I would pass numerous people I know. Today was different - they were all strangers.
The day also brought lunch at the King's Head. They are having a new carpet laid at the moment. I can remember going to this pub for a drink way back in the early 1970s well before I knew anything about the village or ever had ideas of living there.
The King's Head is a very welcoming place, particularly in the winter when an open log fire keeps everyone warm. Beer prices continue to rise, however, with a pint now costing around £2.
I received notification today of an archive open day on 23rd February at Hethersett Library where many original and copied documents will be on display. I wonder if anything we are doing in the village at the moment will be on display in 100 years time.
Also today I visited the bottle and magazine banks in the centre of the village. Re-cycling material is a fairly new idea, but the small green receptacles are well used.
Tuesday January 26th
The Methodist Church has a number of groups attached to it. Over the years myself and Anne have been members of a number, although at present I only have a small interest.
Many years ago I was founder member of the Men's Club which meets once a month for discussions, sports evenings, meals and other matters.
Tonight we had a talk on the history of coffee at Grinders. It may be a strange concept to grasp that the national Headquarters of Grinders in this country is in a village such as Hethersett. The reason is simple. The owner of the franchise - Andrew Richardson- was born about two miles away in Great Melton. After spending many years in the USA in the coffee business, he has returned to the UK to set up businesses. Rather than set up an HQ in a large city he decided to return to his roots.
Grinders in Hethersett is mainly the administrative centre but the front showroom doubles up as a coffee bar selling gourmet coffees.
Coffee was first discovered by an Ethiopian goat-herder. Today over 400 billion cups are drunk every year. Grinders takes its coffee beens from around the world. The talk attracted 11 members of the men's club - about twice the usual number.
The February edition of Good News magazine tells us that a Norfolk film archive and chips evening is being held at Hethersett Old Hall School on 5th March. The magazine also poses the questions - In 100 years time what will the residents of Hethersett know about us and the village we live in? The answer is probably a lot more than we know about the residents of 100 years ago.
The beginning of May will bring parish council elections tot he village. I can't say that the present council is very progressive! The magazine is full of dates for the village, illustrating just how many groups exist.
Wednesday January 27th
A governors meeting at the Middle School began discussing far reaching plans to re-furbish and improve accommodation. This could involve re-siting the design and technology block, improving the swimming pool, changing classroom space and re-siting the main offices at the front rather than the side of the building.
The fly in the ointment could be a government ruling that could necessitate the re-constitution of the governing body with more parent-governor representatives.
By and large the remainder of the month alternated between mild and damp weather.
Sunday January 31st
Whilst part of the family take to the football fields on Sundays, Anne keeps up her attendance at the Methodist Church. Tonight there was a special service featuring a number of children. After the service the minister and his wife - the Rev Gerald and Lynne Cole - open up their doors to a number of youngsters aged up to 15 which they call the 999 club. The name comes from the last three digits of their telephone number. This evening the group (which meets every two weeks) was ahead of itself - making early Valentines' cards.
There have been a number of Methodist ministers in the village since we have lived here.
When we first moved here the Rev Brian Dann was the incumbent with his wife Margaret. They subsequently moved to the Newcastle area and were replaced by John and Rosemary Dean who never really settled into the Norfolk way of life which I think was too quiet for them. They moved to Runcorn in Cheshire and were replaced by William and Lynne Booker who were the first to live in the village manse in Richardson Crescent. They eventually moved to Oxford and their place was taken by the Coles.
The church itself holds two services - one in the mornings at 10.30 a.m and one at 6.30 p.m - both of course on Sundays.
Over the years attendance at the services has fluctuated but is currently very healthy. The types of service over the years have varied from the solemn to the modern.
A youth club ran for many years on Friday evenings but closed a few years ago due to lack of people prepared to run it. For a number of years myself and Anne helped at this. Many of the children who attended have long since grown up and I am sure many have children of their own.
The Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury is a free newspaper which circulates in Hethersett. Copy from the village is usually provided by a village correspondent who at the present time is Liz Thetford who lives in Priory Close.
The front page of the edition for January 29th ran a story about pantomime dame Barry Foster who played throughout this year's event despite having chopped the top off a finger by catching it in a door at rehearsals.
Apparently it didn't hamper him too much apart from the scene where he is supposed to hang out washing on a line. It did prove a problem in his working life, however, as he's a painter and decorator.
The latest edition of the Hethersett Handbook has been published by the parish council. It is a directory of Hethersett organisations and businesses and includes maps. It acts mainly as a contacts list, but also gives another idea of the large number of groups which exist in the village and also an insight into village life at this turn of the century.
So here are some facts and figures for posterity.
Hethersett Parish Council meets on the fourth Monday of each month in the Humphrey Back Room of the village hall. The chairman is Dr Geoff Brownsey who lives in Park Close. The parish clerk is Mrs Diana Dring who lives in Barford - a village about five miles away.
The village doctors at Hethersett surgery are Drs Signy, Beeby, Press and Morris.
The dental surgery is situated in Great Melton Road and the branch library is in Queen's Road. It has storytime sessions for under-5s on the second Wednesday of the month from 2.15 to 2.45 p.m. The library itself opens on Mondays from 2.30 to 7.30, on Wednesdays from 10 a.m to 1 p.m and 2 to 5 p.m, on Thursdays from 2.30 to 7.30 and on Saturdays from 10 a.m until 1 p.m.
There are a number of village charities. The Hethersett Parochial Charity assists those in need, hardship or distress and clerk to the trustees is Mrs S. Clarke from Lynch Green. The Caroline Lindley Trust gives further education grants for young people of the parish aged between 18 and 25.
The Hethersett and District Nursing Association assists those who are sick and in financial need and Hethersett and District Lions provide help to the community as a whole.
On the publications front, the local correspondent for the Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury and the Eastern Evening news is Liz Thetford, whilst the Good News Parish Magazine is organised by a number of people through the parish church.
Community and support groups include Age Concern, the Friendly Club, the Good Companions Club for the Over-50s, the Happy Circle, Meals on Wheels organised by the Women's Royal Voluntary Service, Books on Wheels also organised by the WRVS and a Pensioners Association. A Millennium committee has been set-up to co-ordinate Millennium celebrations/commemorations in the village and there is a voluntary services co-ordinator who recruits volunteers and liaises with voluntary groups to offer help and support to the community.
The handbook lists a large number of sports and recreation clubs. These include:
Badminton (Thursday evenings at the High School), Bowls (Wednesday and Saturday afternoons from May to September at the Memorial Playing Fields and also at Hethersett Social Club), Cricket (at the Memorial Playing Field from April to September), Cycle Speedway (Hethersett Hawks at the Memorial Playing Field on Tuesdays at 6 p.m from April to October), football (in a variety of guises at the high school, middle school and memorial playing field on Sundays), table tennis (Village Hall on Wednesdays from 4 to 6 p.m for those aged 8 to 16), swimming (adult education courses for family and adult classes at Hethersett Middle School and Old Hall School). There are also aquafit classes.
As far as recreation areas are concerned there is the Memorial Playing Field and an all weather pitch at the village hall which is available for tennis, basketball and five-a-side football although it has to be said that it has been built in the wrong dimensions and is not used for any of these purposes much to the annoyance of the sports clubs who were not consulted before it was built.
There are numerous halls and buildings for hire in the village including the church hall in Henstead Road, the Jubilee Youth Club in Back Lane, Hethersett Middle School which offers rooms, hall, swimming pool and playing fields, Hethersett High School, Old Hall School which lets out a sports hall, barn, swimming pool and tennis courts, the Methodist School Room and the Village Hall in Back Lane which has a large hall, committee room, stage, kitchen and bar facilities.
In addition to the above the high school tennis courts are left open for village use free of charge throughout the summer.
Equal opportunities, sexism - all buzz words of the late 20th century where it is politically incorrect to have groups excluding people by race or gender.
Nevertheless in a village like Hethersett, the past is still in play. There are several groups in the village for women. These include the Mothers' Union which meets on the fourth Monday of the month at the Church Hall in Henstead Road, the women's fellowship which meets on alternate Thursdays in the Methodist Schoolroom, the women's meeting which meets on alternate Thursdays in the Baptist Church in Henstead Road and the Women's Institute which meets on the third Monday of the month in the Methodist Schoolroom.
Continuing the trawl through the village organisations, there are a number catering for mums with young children including the Mother and Baby Group on Fridays in the Church Hall, the Under-5s which meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays in St Remigius Church and offer worship and activities for the under-5s and their carers. The Chimes Pre-School music group meets in the Methodist Schoolroom during term time. First Steps for toddlers, babies and parents meet for play and chat at the Village Hall on Fridays. Next Steps is for those from 18 months and takes place on Tuesdays.
The Playgroup for those aged 2 1/2 to 5 meet on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings in the Methodist Schoolroom whilst the Ducklings Activity Group for those aged 2 to 2 1/2 meets on Wednesdays. Little Fishes meet on the first and third Tuesdays in the Methodist Schoolroom for under-5s. In addition there is a baby sitting circle which organises mutual babysitting without the need to pay and a parent and baby clinic which meets twice monthly in the Methodist Schoolroom.
Youth organisations (all of which meet in the Scout and Guide Hut off Queen's Road) include Rainbow Guides (girls 5 to 7 years of age), 1st Hethersett Brownies, 4th Hethersett Brownies, 1st Hethersett Guides, 1st Hethersett Beavers (boys of pre-cubs age), Woodhall Cubs, Cromwell Cubs and Scouts. The Jubilee Youth Club in Back Lane opens its doors to Seniors (aged 14 and above) on Mondays and Wednesdays and Juniors (12 to 14) on Fridays.
There are a whole host of leisure groups including the following: Art and Craft group, Hethersett Choral Society, the St Remigius Church Guild, Hethersett Society, Hethersett and District Horticultural Society, Jigsaw Library and the Pantomime Group.
Then there is Probus which is a club for retired professional and business people, the Hethersett branch of the Royal British Legion, the Tuesday Club, the Hethersett branch of the Workers Educational Association (WEA) and a Yoga group.
I would like at this point to list the roads in the village:
Admirals Way, Aldborough Loke, Ambleside, Anson Close, Arneside, Ash Close, Back Lane, Bailey Close, Benbow Close, Birch Road, Bucaneer Way, Buckingham Drive, Cann's Lane, Cartmel, Cedar Road, Central Close, Central Crescent, Childs Road, Churchfields, Collingwood Close, Coniston Close, Cromwell Close, Curson Close, Deacon Drive, Drake Close, Exmouth Close, Firs Road, Flint House Gardens, Flowerdew Close, Glengarry Close, Grasmere, Grenville Close, Grove Road, Great Melton Road, Haconsfield, Hall Close, Harman Close, Harmer Close, Harvey Close, Hawk Close, Henstead Road, Howes Close, Hubbards Loke, Hughes Court, Jaguar Road, Karen Close, Kendal Close, Ketteringham Lane, Kett's Close, Lakeland Way, Linden Drive, Lindley Road, Long View, Lynch Green, Lyngate Close, Malthouse Road, Marion Roberts Court, Meadow Close, Melton Court, Mill Close, Mill Road, Muriel Kenny Court, Myrtle Road, Nelson Close. New Road, Nimrod Close, Oak Close, Old Norwich Road, Orchard Way, Park Close, Park Drive, Pond Close, Priory Road, Queen's Road, Recreation Road, Richardson Crescent, Rowan Gardens, Shop Lane, South Croft, St. David's Road, St. John's Close, Stuart Close, The Crescent, Thirlmere, Trout Beck, Ullswater Drive, Vulcan Close. West Croft, Whitegates Close, Woods Close.
Monday February 1st
One of the highlights of the month for me is the regular Music Club. It is an informal meeting of six of us. We take it in turns to host and basically the evening consists of refreshment, but mainly just listening to music. The group was originally an offshoot of the Methodist Church Men's Club. Each year that group had a favourite music evening and that developed into the music club.
Now everything from ballads to blues, classical to punk, modern to jazz is played. Tonight's meeting was at the home of John Freeman in Mill Road. Those attending were John, myself, Ron Baker, Chris Watt, Ray Hannent and Kim Sergeant.
Chris runs his own disco as well as being a full time teacher at Hethersett Middle School. Kim has just moved from the village to Barnham Broom.
On this particular evening records were played by the likes of Gomez, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Pat Metheny, Eric Clapton, The Clash, Meatloaf, Simon and Garfunkel, Neil Young, Beach Boys, Robbie Williams, Simply Red, U2, Tom Waits, John Lennon and the Lightning Seeds. It is usually around midnight before we wend our way home.
Tonight the village was featured on the front page of the Eastern Evening news - a daily evening paper circulating in and around the Norwich area.
This particular story - deemed to be the most important of the day - surrounded a loss of identity for some householders in Malthouse Road. It ran.
Angry residents of a Hethersett road are today demanding a rethink after discovering the number is up for their old addresses.
The problem is that six houses will have their numbers changed because of new development.
Residents have called for a new street to be set up for the new bungalows. The builder of the new development is supporting the residents.
The sub heading for the story was "Residents in a two-and-eight over changes". Two and eight is rhyming slang for state.
Tuesday February 2nd
Local traders seem to be using mail shots more and more to advertise their services. Today we received a poster advertising Sophie's Florist in Great Melton Road. Sophie's will be open from 9 a.m until 1 p.m on Valentine's Day (14th February) which this year falls on a Sunday.
Sophie's is a very small shop situated close to the junction of Great Melton Road and Mill Road. It opens between 9 a.m and 5 p.m on Mondays to Fridays with a one hour break for lunch at 1 p.m and on Saturday's it is open straight through from 9 until 5. It is still a quaint old English custom for business premises to shut for an hour at lunchtime.
Sophie's caters for flowers for weddings, birthdays, funerals and also sells plants, balloons, gifts and silk and dried flowers. The leaflet had a key ring attached to the back and reminded us all that Mothering Sunday is this year on 14th March.
Friday February 5th
On the way back to the village around lunchtime I passed Kett's Oak on the Old A 11 and noticed it is being lopped. Rumour has it that the tree died many years ago and is now filled with concrete. It will be an important landmark this year which is the 450th anniversary of the rebellion.
Meanwhile 450 years later at Park Farm Hotel they held one of their Mellow Moments evenings which consist of dimmed lights, soft music and people messing around in the swimming pool!
Saturday February 6th
They used to call them ceilidh. Now they are simply barn dances. Tonight Cringleford Tennis Club held one in Hethersett Village Hall. We have attended numerous of these dances in the village going back many years. Over the years we have also organised a number for various events which is unremarkable except for the fact that I really do not enjoy them.
On the way home from Norwich at about 5 p.m we noticed flames coming from the area of Ketteringham Lane. It appeared to be a house fire, although my first thoughts were that it was tyre depot across the by-pass. There had been a fire there a few months previous. When we drove past the scene at 7.45 p.m the fire brigade were still there and the fire seemed to be continuing. On the way back at 11.30 p.m the road was closed.
During the day I wrote a piece for the local newspaper about three Hethersett Athletic footballers who will be playing in a prestigious tournament in Texas in March. I still write the occasional piece for the newspaper - particularly when one of our sons is involved!
The three - Chris Steward, Ben Watt and Scott Newstead - will be playing for the Hewett School in an international tournament for the Dallas Cup at the end of March.
The boys are all close friends and are actively looking for sponsorship at the present time.
Sunday February 7th
This was the coldest day of the year so far by a long way. A biting wind made it miserable despite bright sunshine as well.
I got thoroughly cold running the line for the Under-15s friendly at the high school which saw them beat Wymondham 4-0 with one of their best displays of the season.
It was noticeable that hockey goals at the high school have been wrecked. The wind has been strong but it certainly looks more like vandalism.
It seems incredible to me that yobs with no interests can decide that other people aren't going to enjoy themselves or have access to facilities. The football nets are also torn and this could have been caused by a knife. Vandalism isn't a great problem in the village, but it does exist.
Evenings in the village often see groups of youngsters hanging around. Most are just meeting to chat, but there are still the mindless few who want to cause damage.
Being a Sunday it seems fitting at this point to list the churches in the village and their times of services.
As already mentioned the present parish church was begun in 1320 and dedicated to St Remigius (438-533), the great Bishop of Rheims. Remigius de Hethersett, a priest who also participated in the building of Hingham Church, may have suggested the dedication in honour of his name-saint.
St Remigius is a magnificent building set off the old A11 road and opposite the modern Steepletower development. Sunday services are Holy Communion at 8 a.m, morning worship at 10.30 a.m and evening worship at 6.30 p.m. Sunday celebration is held on the third Sunday of the month at the middle school.
The Methodist Church has services at 10.30 a.m and 6.30 p.m with a Sunday School in the morning.
The Baptist Church has services at 10.45 a.m and 6.30 p.m.
Early evening it begins to snow which is scarcely a surprise. By mid evening it has already slackened off, however.
A walk or drive through the village fails to show all the businesses available. They include: Alma Antique Restorers, Aromatherapy/Reflexology, Barclays Bank, Halifax Building Society, Ye Olde Bakery, Hethersett Tool Hire, A.E Forster Builders, Hethersett Butchers, Hethersett Car Centre, Nick Fulcher Coachtrimmer, K.R Gray Carpenter, Proclean (Eastern), Hethersett Cattery, Swinton and Co Chartered Accountants, Edwards Pharmacy, Sylvia Parfitt Choropodist, Ronald Wales Chiropodist, Grinders Coffee, Gilbey Crafts, Yvonne School of Dance, Hethersett Dental Laboratories, Hethersett DIY Stores, June Robinson Dressmaker, Juliet's Sewing Service, Chris Lewer Electrical Contractor, Harvey's Autos, Cliff Dixon Finance, R.J. Litten and Partners Independent Financial Advisors, G. W Woodbine Fish and Chips, Quilland Furniture and Gifts, Sophie's Florists, Top It All Hat Hire, Attractions Hair Salon, Rosalind Bunn Hairdresser, The March Hair, Park Farm Hotel, Norfolk Insurance Services, St Margaret's Pet Centre, F.S Harris and Associates Marine Surveyors, Rockinghorse Day Nursery, Greenacre Office Equipment, David Whitworth painter and decorator, Easilt Impressed Promotions, Hethersett Picture Framing Service, Bob Clayton Heating and Plumbing Services, Hethersett Post Office, Fransham Press, King's Head Public House, Queen's Head Public House, G. Browne Repairs, Hethersett Hall Home for the Elderly, the Business Base, Woodcote Sheltered Housing Complex, Dillons Supermarket, Hethersett Tailoring Services, Abb Cabs Taxi Service.
Monday February 8th
Hethersett had no snow overnight unlike other parts of Norfolk which seem to have hard quite large falls. Getting out of the village was easy, getting into Norwich was not.
The fire we passed on Saturday was in a disused and derelict barn in Ketteringham Lane. Firefighters were called to the scene at 5.10 p.m and used three pumps and a water carrier from fire headquarters. The cause of the fire is being treated as suspicious.
Tuesday February 9th/Wednesday February 10th
Two days of sub zero temperatures and snow. There was a strange sight driving out of the village today. On the left side of the old A11 the fields were green and had absolutely no snow on them, whilst on the right they were white. I'm wondering whether it had anything to do with the wind patterns.
The remainder of the month consisted of seemingly equal amounts of sunshine, wind and rain, but little snow.
February is possibly the drabbest month of the year. Spring still seems a long way off and the turn of the year seems very remote.
School half-term comes and goes and the long haul towards Easter is underway.
Many organisations also seem dormant. The summer fete season is distant although a few jumble sales have been taking place.
Tuesday February 23rd
The village library doesn't usually open on Tuesdays, but today it hosted a display of village archives put together by village archivist Bill Reekie, who just happens to be my neighbour.
The archives included census, maps, documents, histories and press cuttings. The village seems to be very aware of its past and heritage as we reach the new millennium. The archive is a rich source of information. Sadly it is of no use for my attempts at tracing my ancestry as my forebears came from other parts of the county of Norfolk.
The hint of summer beckons in the form of a note from Hethersett Cricket Club which came through our door this week. Net practices have been arranged at Easton Sports Centres in March and April.
This year the club has entered two teams in the Norfolk League which means two matches every Saturday from the beginning of May to the end of August. There will also be matches every Sunday as well as evening league, friendlies and knockout competitions and a national under-15 competition.
The cricket club has been in existence since 1860 (more about its history at a later date). All the male members of the Steward family have played for the club at some time in the past 10 years and Matthew still plays regularly.
The parish magazine for March (it's always a month ahead of itself) has more interesting articles reflecting village life, although its coverage of events might actually reflect a slightly gentler pace of life entrenched somewhere about 20 years ago.
Nevertheless it does reflect many of the current matters featured in village life along with details of groups that meet in the village.
Churches Together focuses on different areas of the village at informal meetings on the second Wednesday of each month. This takes the form of prayer groups.
In the funerals' section of the magazine I noticed the name Jack Halsey who I seem to recollect was a leading light in the labour party when we first came to the village. He was also secretary of the Royal British Legion.
The announcement section tells us of the impending retirement of Dr Signy at the end of April. He has been a doctor at the village surgery for 31 years. Coming events include a Norfolk film archive and chips evening on 5th March at Old Hall School and St Remigius Church is to be decorated for Easter. The magazine also points out that parish council elections take place on Thursday 6th May. Nominations have to be in by 8th April. I won't be applying.
The Tidy Britain group are running an anti-litter campaign throughout April. I doubt whether it will make any difference in the village where the amount of litter sometimes borders on the unacceptable, although it does appear to have improved in the last few years.
Other news includes a review of bus services to the village with the bus company meeting parish councillors to discuss problems with the service. That surrounds buses not turning up at all, turning up full or occasionally breaking down.
It looks as if the village will have a new re-cycling unit at the Jubilee Youth Club car park in Back Lane.
In September 1993 the former post office in Great Melton Road was taken over by the MacMillan Cancer Charity as a charity shop, selling clothes, books and many other goods. Since its opening the shop has raised an impressive £110,000 - over £20,000 a year.
Village plans for the millennium are also progressing and diary dates for the year 2000 include a fete and procession on Saturday 24th June, a children's party on Saturday 15th July and a millennium ball on the same day.
The parish magazine looks back at news from 75 years ago. The latest edition featured the Hethersett Nursing Association whereby parishioners can pay a small weekly subscription to have nurse's services free. Membership is divided into two classes with class one paying 1d a week and class two paying 1.5d a week. Class one includes labourers, gardeners, carpenters, bricklayers and smallholders and class two bailiffs, stewards, teachers, shopkeepers, farmers, engineers and mechanics.
Back on the millennium theme, Churches Together is supplying every household with a candle to light in the year 2000. Volunteers are being sought to deliver them.
Hethersett Parochial Charities have expressed their concern about the elderly during bad weather. They have appealed for people to keep a special watch on the elderly and infirm to ensure they are keeping warm and are not short of fuel. In certain cases the charity pays fuel costs.
This year's village pantomime - Jack and the Beanstalk - raised £2,130 for charity. The following donations were made: Eastern Evening News MacMillan Cancer Relief campaign £600; Jubilee Youth Club £300; New Village Hall £250; Church Hall £250; Accident Rescue Service £200; Norfolk Association for the Disabled £200, BEARS group for the disabled £200 and Little Melton Church Audio System.
Saturday February 27th
One of the most popular evenings in the village is Quiz and Chips. Quiz evenings have been the in thing for the past five years. The essence of the idea is to take teams of up to eight people for a quiz on a variety of subjects. The evenings are usually in aid of a specific group or charity and feature a fish and chip supper.
Tonight there was such an event at the Middle School organised by the Parent-Teacher Association and it raised £300. The questions were set by Roger Morgan and Mike Anderson who compile a number of such events each year. Sixteen teams took part in a very enjoyable evening. Modesty prevents me from announcing who the winners were.
Sunday February 28th
February went out with a bang. The morning started bright and reasonably warm with signs of spring in the air with crocuses and daffodils out. During the day, however, the wind whipped up and by late afternoon there was heavy rain and the temperature dipped alarmingly.
Even more alarming was the sight of two fully grown men trying to fly a kite on the playing field. They were both lifted off their feet by the power of the kits in the wind, but insisted on hanging on. This caused damage to the cricket square and was a very silly undertaking.
March to June
The weather may not change dramatically, but the village comes out of its winter hibernation as spring approaches.
There have been a number of problems with vandalism during this period. The Methodist Church has been broken into on a number of occasions leading to the belief that someone has got hold of a key.
The re-cycling bins next to the main village shops were destroyed by arson but the culprits were not caught. Despite all this the village is a relatively safe and peaceful place to live.
The period between March and June was quite a sad one with the deaths of two well known residents - Tony Curson and Frank Ong. Frank was well known for his work with Norfolk Lawn Tennis Association.
There was the usual round of barn dances (for the High School), quizzes (for the First School) and social events and group meetings.
All three schools were very active in the community with a full range of social and fund-raising events.
This period also saw the elections for the parish council although the word election is incorrect because there were insufficient candidates and so appointment was automatic.
Sadly there still seems to be insufficient numbers of people willing to put themselves forward to serve the community. Like many villages there is a strong band of people who give their time and energy to organising groups and raising funds. For every one of these, however, there are 100 who are content to do nothing.
This leads to the complaint that the village is run by "the same old people" which isn't surprising as they are the only ones prepared to undertake the various functions.
Having said that public participation can be time consuming and demanding as I'm only too aware. It can also lead to criticism which has to be taken squarely on the chin. I have always believed that if you believe strongly in something you should have the courage of your convictions.
TONY CURSON 1928-1999
Tony Curson was one of the best known residents of the village and totally immersed himself in school and village life. He was fully involved in parish church activities for about 50 years. He was a church warden for many years and was treasurer and chairman of numerous church committees.
He was also a long standing parish councillor and vice-chairman at the time of his death.
Over the years he helped backstage with the annual village pantomime and was also involved with the Memorial Playing Field Committee, the parochial charity. He was a former chairman of the Middle School governing body and vice-chairman of Hethersett Choral Society.
Tony held just about every position within Hethersett Cricket Club having notched up over 22,000 runs, taken over 2,500 wickets and held nearly 700 catches.
He died whilst mowing the cricket square on May 10th.
The head teacher of Woodside First School - Vivienne Horobin - has announced her retirement at the end of the school year after 15 years in charge at the school. The school held its annual summer fete on 12th June with all the usual stalls and attractions.
There was no need for an election for the parish council on May 6th as insufficient candidates put themselves forward. As a result the following were elected uncontested: George Beckford, Elizabeth Capleton, Tony Curson, Liz Hovey, Nick Jarvis, Cyril Murfin, Fred Watkins, Bridget Williamson and Colin Wilson. The council is undertaking a programme of replacement for the old concrete street lighting columns.
The annual meeting of the Jubilee Youth Club took place on 23rd June. Over the past year, membership has increased with over 50 youngsters using the facilities two nights per week. There are plans to extend the youth club.
George Beckford was elected chairman of the parish council at the annual meeting with Nick jarvis as vice-chairman. Jim Bartram and Malcolm Goldspink were co-opted to fill vacancies. At this time one vacancy exists with the death of Tony Curson. This will be filled with an election on July 22nd.
There is still a possibility of turning a field opposite the King's Head into a village green. Several letters of support have been received by the parish council and the matter has been referred to the landowner.
As already mentioned, Dr Michael Signy retired from the Hethersett practice after 31 years as a GP. He was presented with a computer from patients, staff and partners.
The set-up at the Memorial Playing Field Committee has changed with Jim Bartram as chairman, Mel Bradfield secretary and other members being: Geoff Brownsey, Alan Capleton, Peter Salter, Simon Thorne and Paul White. The group are looking into the refurbishment of the pavilion which never seems to have been finished. Litter, broken bottles and glass have been strewn across the cricket pitch by youths and this seems to be an on-going problem. Also a horse has been seen exercising on the field and dog fouling is another problem.
On the sporting side, the main Hethersett Sunday football team has folded. Most of the players representing the side came from outside the village.
It is expected their pitch will now be used by the expanding Hethersett Athletic Club which will be running teams at Under-11, Under-12, Under-13, Under-14, Under-15, Under-16, girls Under-13 and two adult sides for the coming season. The new adult side has been elected to the Norwich Sunday League Division 4B.
The club will be using the Memorial Playing Field as its main base and the village social club as its base for meetings.
The club held an emotional presentation evening on may 8th at the Village Hall attracting over 120 people. The various teams within the club presented their trophies, but the main presentation of the evening was the Lee Thompson Memorial Trophy given in memory of Lee. It was awarded to the player making an outstanding contribution to the club. It went to Under-17 captain Chris Steward for his outstanding leadership during the previous season. Needless to say there was scarcely a dry eye in the house.
The club is holding a series of barbecues at the social club during the summer.
Another sports club has been hit by vandalism. The playing field bowls club has had its water pump stolen.
Of an even more serious nature was an armed robbery at Dillons store in the village centre in June. Fortunately a Suffolk man was quickly caught for the crime.
Former parish councillor and clerk to the council Rosemary Watts has left the village to take over the post of Church Tourism Co-ordinator for the diocese of Lincoln.
Looking forward, the Millennium Committee is planning a special party in the village hall on 31st December. It is likely to include a disco, live television coverage and a children's room. All children living in the parish under the age of 12 will receive a free millennium mug. The mug includes the logo of the Hethersett Millennium group and also images of Ketts Oak and the village sign. Additional mugs are being made for sale to those over 12.
Hethersett Choral Society is looking for new members for their autumn season when they will be working on Handel's Messiah for a concert early in the new millennium.
Another well known village resident died in June. Frank Ong was 92 years of age. Frank will be remembered for his great service to Norfolk tennis over many decades.
There is news of another new club in the village. Owner of the Tool Hire business, Peter Hoult, has started Hethersett Cycling Club. It is designed to cater for all ages, groups and abilities and aims to provide regular bike maintenance clinics, regular meets and rides, access to county and national routes, links and events, shared use of equipment, organised competitions, orienteering and expeditions, proficiency training for juniors and discounted deals on cycles and spares. The first organised ride was on Friday 25th June - a light three mile saunter round the village. This was followed by a longer 12 to 14 mile ride along tracks and minor roads.
The branch library has come into the computer age with the launch of an Internet connection available to the public at a charge of £1.80 for 30 minutes.
On June 23rd and 24th pupils at Hethersett Middle School put on an excellent variety show which included song, comedy and dance as well as sketches from the London musical Cats.
JULY
July turned out to be a very warm month indeed with plenty of unbroken spells of hot weather. Numerous events took place in the village and it is only possible on these pages to give a general feel of what is going on. I have to apologise for leaning towards the groups that I am involved with, but that is only natural.
A new newspaper was launched in July. I use the word "newspaper" loosely. It is actually no more than a small glossy advertising sheet issued monthly by Eastern Counties Newspapers. It has a scattering of village stories which have been taken from other sources. In other words any copy that is sent in to the editors. It can never be a true reflection of the village because submissions are the only things printed and the editors make little attempt to get to the heart of the village.
The front page of the first edition features Hethersett Dumplings pre-school playgroup which has been awarded a grant of £1,420 from the National Lotteries Charity Board. This follows on a good Ofsted (Office of Standards in Education) report in January. The grant will be used to fund the building of two new sheds to house toys and equipment. The introduction of a minimum wage and paid holiday for staff has meant little spare cash.
The newspaper also marks the retirement of Vi Redington as head of Hethersett Old Hall School.
There are four schools in the village and two of the heads retired at the end of term. Vivienne Horobin also decided to call it a day at Woodside First School.
The following tribute appeared to Vi Redington in the press.
"The headmistress of independent girls school Hethersett Old Hall School has retired after almost 17 years in the post.
Victoria Redington presented her final annual report to a large audience at the school's speech day this month.
The annual leavers' ball rounded off the day, with many girls attending to say their own farewells to Mrs Redington.
She has been a representative on the Girl Schools Association, ISIS and the Boarding Schools Association. She is also on an independent schools committee which is working with the Government to develop national quality assessments for UK boarding schools.
Mrs Redington will be succeeded by Janet Mark, currently head of girls school St Andrew's, Bedford. Mrs Mark is a modern languages graduate of London University and has taught in the maintained and independent sectors.
Elsewhere in the new publication the village middle school is featured extensively. Articles are included on the school's Indian life day, the variety show and also on the school's attempts to raise money for the Wildlife Trust.
"Hethersett Middle School children put on a variety show to sell-out audiences of parents, friends and children. The acts included dancing, opera singing, recitations, instrumentalists and choir. Highlights of the show were Rohan and Aditi Chitale and their Jive dancing and Year Seven's selections from the musical Cats. This involved over 60 of the Year 7 children who performed four dances and a choral poem. The dances were put together during PE lessons and arose out of a study of TS Eliot's cat poems."
Year Six children from the school held a special day as a finale to their work on the history and geography of India including religion, culture and music.
The children dressed in Indian clothes and were served an Indian meal at lunchtime consisting of vegetable curry, rice, naan breads, poppadoms, yoghurt, onion baaji and Bombay mix. Other activities included a slide show given by Terry George, a parent at the school, about her travels through India and Kiran Chitale, also a parent at the school, showed various Indian artefacts and spoke about Indian dances. Mrs Chitale also demonstrated how to put on a sari.
Visitors from a Norwich Indian restaurant talked about traditional Indian cooking and their Muslem beliefs. The children performed Indian musical compositions and acted out traditional Indian myths and legends.
For a number of years some residents have been trying to get a one-way system introduced into Cann's Lane. This is a very narrow entrance/exit from the old Norwich Road which is also obscured from view. To my knowledge there have been no accidents there, but it is still thought to be a dangerous corner.
The Fire Brigade are concerned at problems that could be caused if this is made one-way, however. It is also difficult to decide which direction a one-way flow would operate in. Whichever way the traffic flows will create more traffic using the narrow Norwich Road-Queen's Road junction. The parish council has agreed not to create a one-way system but to recommend to the Highway Authority that a 20 mph speed limit be introduced with a stop sign at the Norwich Road end of Cann's Lane. They are also to ask for a mirror in order to improve visibility at the junction.
The council has received no nominations for the parish council following the death of Tony Curson. There seems to be a general apathy in the village towards public duty. At the beginning of the month the annual parents evening at the Middle School where the governors report on the past year was attended by just eight parents out of a possible 500 or so.
Plans to turn land opposite the King's Head into a village green seem to be stuttering. The agent for the owner of the land has said his client would prefer the field to remain in agricultural use. It is intended to review the matter annually although it is difficult to see how an area of land on the edge of the village can provide any sort of focal point.
The village hall committee has turned down the idea of an additional recycling centre in the village because it felt the village hall is not an appropriate site.
Getting to the parish church can be a hazardous process for pedestrians. Now the parish council is supporting the idea of improved access to St Remigius on the B1172. It has been agreed that the bus stop needs to be moved.
The annual parish church fete took place on 3rd July in the Rectory Gardens. It raised £782 for general church funds. The Christian Aid collection in the village raised £1,025.59.
There is news on millennium celebrations in the village. The Millennium Committee is planning a new year's party in the village hall which is likely to include a disco, live television coverage, a children's room, a beacon and food. The committee is also considering the commissioning of a stained glass panel to commemorate the millennium and this will be mounted in a public building. To this end a public slide show is being organised on 14th September at the village hall.
One of the major events in the village during July took place on the High School/Middle School complex on the 25th. The first ever Hethersett Athletic five-a-side funday attracted football teams from throughout Norfolk with 66 teams taking part and over 160 games of football being played.
The event raised £1,700 for club funds. Teams from the village found the competition tough with only the girls team reaching the final where they were beaten 2-0 by a team from Cambridge United.
Members of the Under-16s boys and girls teams went on a sponsored ghost walk of Norwich and then slept the night in the supposedly haunted Maddermarket Theatre. No ghosts were spotted but the night raised money for a new strip for the coming season.
AUGUST
The latest edition of the Hethersett Mercury carried a tribute to Vivienne Horobin to mark her 15 years as head of Woodside First and Nursery School.
Several presentations were made to her at the end of term including a steamer chair, picnic hamper and cut glass decanters. Ninety children from the village Middle School who were former pupils at Woodside, walked to the school as a special gesture to say goodbye.
Twenty eight children went on a summer safari at the village library. The children enjoyed stories and activities on a jungle theme. Aged between five and eight they made parrot and crocodile bookmarks, wild animal cards and a large giraffe collage.
Long serving parish councillor Elizabeth Capleton has resigned from the council after 20 years service through ill health. This leaves two vacancies on the body.
After more than two years' negotiation, the village will be getting a second recycling centre. The village hall management committee has agreed to the siting of a centre on the car park. This has been supported by South Norfolk District Council.
Over the years there has been controversy over parents parking to drop children off at Woodside First School. Now the Memorial Playing Field Committee has agreed in principle for parents to park cars with access to the rear of the school via a new footpath. The idea of enlarging and resurfacing the car park has to be referred to the charity commission.
The village is applying for a 50 mph speed limit on the main B1172 road. It is also hoped that the Steepletower bus stop will be improved. A path on the church side of the B1172 is to be uncovered and made usable. The problem of the Cann's Lane/Norwich Road junction was also raised. Raising the surface of the entry point either by kerbs or speed bumps could provide a solution to traffic problems.
The parish council is to produce its own newsletter following the publication of the Hethersett Mercury. It is felt the contents of such a newsletter would be unrestricted and not subjected to newspaper editorial constraints. The publication will start in September.
SEPTEMBER
The first of the parish council's quarterly newsletters hit the doormats this month. There are four candidates for the two vacancies on the parish council - Stephanie Clarke, Steve Fulford, Charlotte Land and Russell Turner.
The third phase of replacement of 45 of the concrete street lighting columns in the village has been completed. The final phase to replace the remaining columns will take place next year.
A special Hethersett Clubs and Societies Event to showcase groups in the village will take place at the Village Hall on 25th September. This will give residents the chance to meet representatives of clubs and societies to find out more about their activities and membership details.
There is the distinct possibility of a village appraisal survey being carried out to find out residents' views on the village and its future.
The newsletter lists the functions of the parish council, which are as follows:
Making recommendations on local planning applications, the District Council development plan, road and transport measures, the new hospital and environmental matters.
Maintaining 216 streetlights in the village, supplying dog and litter bins, noticeboards, public seats, the village sign and cutting some of the verges and hedges.
Supporting and funding the parish constable scheme for the village.
Assisting local organisations by providing grants and making donations to bodies such as the Wymondham CAB and Accident Rescue.
Supporting the Youth Club, instigating a youth forum and developing a youth council.
At this point my diary for the year 1999 was discontinued. I hope that this gives a flavour of just some of the things happening in the village at the turn of the century.
To call Hethersett a village could be construed as something of a misnomer.
In years gone by it might well have been classed as a town. Today, however, despite an increasing population it continues to have a "village feel" despite being home to about 5,000 people.
It is nevertheless a rather sprawling village situated about seven miles south of the city of Norwich and three miles north of the thriving market town of Wymondham (pronounced Windham).
The heart of the village features numerous activities and outside of the centre it spreads out in all directions to cover a considerable area.
Friday January 1st, 1999
New Year's Day always seems to bring a laid back feel to the village with few cars about, but numerous people out for morning and afternoon strolls.
Today dawned bright and relatively warm. The village was bathed in sunshine and birdsong could be heard.
A walk round the village shows just how large an area it covers and to gain the most from a walk it is important to pick a particular area and stick to the route.
Starting from home we walked along St David's Road before cutting through to Priory Road via Firs Road. St. David's Road is essentially a middle class residential road stretching for about one-third of a mile from New Road to Firs Road. It is a cul-de-sac at the top end with just a pedestrian cut through.
Most gardens are well cared for. It is impossible to walk along the road without hearing the chorus made by the crows from the trees behind the properties nearest to the main road. The birds nest in massive trees and are capable of making a very loud noise indeed.
By using the cut through from Firs Road to Priory Road one misses Woodside First School which is situated on the left. This route also bypasses Woodcote Housing Complex for the elderly.
Priory Road consists of mainly medium sized houses and winds down to the old Norwich Road. Close to the end is a wooded section which runs adjacent to the garden of the King's Head Public House.
On New Year's Day, 1999, the path alongside this stretch of road is partially overgrown and certainly work is needed to tidy up this area.
The Old Norwich Road is now extremely quiet. Looking across the fields the former A11 is just a few yards away. This road has also been by-passed, thus helping the peace and solitude of the village.
There is no better way of spending a warm summer's evening than in the garden of the King's Head. But, this being winter, we must be on our way. Suffice it to say that the King's is a quintessential English Pub.
As we walk the King's Head is on our left and shortly after we come to Norfolk Fire Headquarters (Whitegates). Crossing Cann's Lane we come to Harvey's Garage where petrol prices always seem to be higher than in the surrounding areas (the main reason I have never filled my car up there). The garage also repairs vehicles.
On the right is Hethersett Antiques and the March Hair salon. Both are small modern brick buildings. On the left at the junction with Queen's Road is the Queen's Head Public House. A number of years ago Hethersett boasted three public houses, but the former Greyhound in Henstead Road is now a private house. Over the past few years the Queen's Head seems to have lost some of its popularity.
Turning left into Queen's Road, the village middle school is on the right. Over 250 children aged from eight to 12 attend this historic school.
A few yards further on is the village business centre and then the village social club. A small road leads down on the right to the High School complex which also includes the scout and guide headquarters. At the beginning of this road is the village library which opens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays but which had its opening hours cut at the end of last year.
Queen's Road continues towards the heart of the village (although on today's tour we will ignore this area) where it turns into Great Melton Road.
Today we turn right into Henstead Road. At the junction of Great Melton and Henstead Roads is Grinders coffee shop. Rather strangely Hethersett is the national headquarters for Grinders. This becomes more understandable by the fact that the proprietor is a local man.
Opposite Grinders is the former Post Office which is at present a charity shop, but which is up for sale. The shop occupied by Grinders itself has had a number of identities over the years. I can remember it as a newsagents and also a cross stitch shop.
Henstead Road leads to open countryside going towards Little Melton. As you walk along, the small Baptist Church is on the right and the former Greyhound Public House on the left just before the Church Rooms which are also known as the Old Village Hall and which many years ago were one of two schools in the village.
These rooms are still available for hire despite the building of the new village hall in Back Lane which is off to the right further along Henstead Road.
On today's tour we walk halfway down Back Lane towards the modern Steepletower Development, but double back before reaching it. At this point the new village hall is on our left. It was built as part of the agreement with the developers of Steepletower.
A short way further along on the opposite side of the road is the Jubilee Youth Club (a rather dull standard rectangular brick building). The playing fields of the high school are at the back of the youth club.
Doubling back we now have the village hall on our right. This time we cross Henstead Road and go down Grove Road. This again ends in a cul-de-sac with a pedestrian cut through to a rough pathway leading to what is known as the Parish Pit. On this particular day, the mud makes walking difficult and it is quite tiring.
Winding through to Lynch Green we pass some of the most historic and exclusive properties in the village. These include Cedar Grange. Eventually we are into Lynch Green and at the junction with Great Melton Road.
This time we turn left and pass the doctors' surgery on our left. On the right is the village butchers and chemists and the dental surgery. A few yards further on is the Methodist Church and opposite this is another walkway leading towards the village's Memorial Playing Fields.
One of the features of the village is its accessibility for pedestrians who can take advantage of many of the short cuts not available to vehicles.
We walk through this cut, being careful not to slip on the wet compacted leaves. On our left is the Memorial Field which, on this bright New Year's Day, is empty!
And so we return via Firs Road and St. David's Road. A wander such as this prompts many thoughts and memories.
On returning home we find the latest copy of the Good News Parish magazine has been delivered. It covers Hethersett, Little Melton and Great Melton and costs just 20p each month.
Businesses advertising in the January 1999 edition give an insight into the kind of activities that are going on in the village as we come to the end of the 20th century.
They include the following: Hethersett Dental Laboratories (established 1972), R.A Foreman and Son Builders, G. J. Fulcher Hethersett Tailoring Service, ABB Cabs Taxi Service, Hethersett Hall Residential Home, Sophie Emms Florists, R.E Burrell Builders Contractors, Aubrey Hammond Cabinet Maker, Hethersett Cattery and Picture Framing Service (a strange combination), Ronald Wales Chiropodist, Jean's Executive Cars, The March Hair, Hethersett Social Club, Yvonne's School of Dance, Hethersett Old Hall School, Hethersett Business Base, Hethersett Village Hall, Barry Foster Decorator, Chris Lewer Electrical Contractor and Harvey's Autos.
Topics featured in the magazine include reports from the Rector, the Rev Di Lammas; the Guild, Good Companions, Senior Citizens, Mothers Union, Church Mission Society, Village Millennium Group, Hethersett Society, Tuesday Club, Village Hall, Happy Circle, Jigsaw Library, Horticultural Society, Hethersett Sports Group, Parish Council, Jubilee Youth Club, Workers' Education Association, Women's Institute, Roman Catholics and Methodists.
Coming diary events include Hethersett's annual pantomime which will be held in the new Village Hall from Saturday 16th to Saturday 23rd January, a slide show of Old Hethersett on Saturday 6th March and Hethersett Church's Summer Fete on Saturday July 3rd.
News topics that promise to continue through the next few months include: The formation of a sports group committee to discuss facilities in the village and the continuing shortage of helpers at the Jubilee Youth Club.
In her address, the rector bemoans the fact that the news of Jesus Christ and God are more often used as swear words or exclamations of surprise. The lack of children attending church is another worrying factor along with the real meaning of the millennium.
No other person (Jesus) has had such influence on the human race...And yet if we did a survey in these villages I guess that the majority of the population would not link the Millennium celebrations in any way to Jesus Christ.
Sunday January 3rd Wet and windy.
Hethersett is bathed in a drabness with rolling thunder clouds overhead and incessant early morning rain.
The village boasts a thriving youth football set-up which plays on Sundays. The club runs an adult team but primarily youth sides at under-11, under-12, under-13, under-15 and under-17. In addition there is a girls under-13 team. So far this has been one of the most successful seasons in the club's history with the Under-11s, Under-12s, Under-15s and Under-17s all in with a chance of winning their sections of the Norfolk Youth Combination.
Today it was the turn of the Under-15s to play on the Memorial Playing Field. Owing to the number of teams run, the club also uses pitches at the Middle School, the High School and Little Melton.
The Memorial Playing Field is tucked away in the centre of the village and is still a focus for sport in the village with bowls, football, cricket and cycle speedway all featured during the year. Sadly the field no longer seems to play host to impromptu kick abouts between fathers and sons. Obviously this kind of activity has been lost with computers now more of an attraction.
The rain made the pitch more akin to a bog. A late decision was made to go ahead with the game after a considerable amount of emergency drainage work had been undertaken.
The Under-15s won 3-2 against Norwich team Waterloo. It was their seventh win in 12 games and the team consisted of: James Sillett, Iain Hill, Daniel Ganley, Ben Harris, Chris Colwell (captain), Nick Appleton, Steven Beck, Matt Steward, Ryan Breeze, Andrew Milne and Robert Mitchell. Substitutes were Chris Brownbridge, Matt Musson and Chris Smedmor.
The whole question of sport in the village is something of a hot potato at present. A meeting in December was held to try and bring all sports clubs together to ensure the best facilities. Many people, myself included, believe that the best use is not made of existing facilities and that there is too much acrimony between a number of the groups in the village.
Tuesday January 5th
The New Year has brought some very unseasonal weather. It is more like Spring than winter with temperatures in the mid 50s Fahrenheit.
The problem is that illness is rife and many people in the village have been suffering from flu and colds seem to hang on.
Picked up my photographs of the village taken on New Year's Day and they are unique in as much as there are no motor vehicles to be seen. It is only on New Year's Day that this is possible - the rest of the year the village seems to be full of cars. Indeed there have been many complaints over the years about parents driving children to schools and making the traffic problems worse.
Few people seem to walk and that must be a tremendous contrast to the village of a few decades ago.
The village has set up an official archive group to record the millennium and I have been invited to join this. The plan is to produce a record of the village in the year 2000.
Wednesday January 6th
The warm weather continues. Work prevents most people from moving about the village during the week and I'm no exception. Away from the village it is difficult to visualise life going on.
The evening brought a visit to the village social club for a football club meeting. The club is quite an extensive building just across from the library. On this particular evening myself and my eldest son Chris joined the club for a modest fee of £5.
Activities available include pool, snooker, table tennis and darts. On this particular evening there was a ladies darts match in progress. We left the social club to find it raining heavily.
Thursday January 7th
To get rid of the flu epidemic we need some cold weather. It is promised for the weekend. Today brought just more rain. It also brought my first visit of the year to the Middle School where I am chairman of governors.
The school is an amalgam of an original school house, now used largely as a store room, and a more modern building.
I have been a governor for about seven years and chairman for two. I was originally elected as a parent governor and continue in that capacity despite no longer having any children at the school.
Today I love the feel and atmosphere of the place. Over the past few years governors have been given increased powers. We are expected to run the finances, hire and fire stafff and bring about improvements. Staff are under more and more pressure from government initiatives and ever-changing demands and increased paperwork.
I see the function of the governing body as supporting the Head and staff, whilst leaving the day to day running to the professionals. It is slightly worrying to realise that lay people such as myself with no educational experience can have such a say in running a school.
Today's visit was for a meeting of the publicity and public relations committee. The function of this is to promote the school both internally and externally. The meeting goes smoothly. The school is now running well under the leadership of Head Tim Strugnell.
Friday January 8th
This evening brought the inaugural meeting of the Millennium Archive Committee which I have been asked to join. The committee will be providing a record of the village in the year 2000 and the preparatory work will be done throughout the year.
An interesting historical point touching on the village came to light today in the form of an Internet site set up to commemorate the 450th anniversary of Kett's Rebellion.
Land Owner Robert Kett joined the common people in their fight against the fencing in of common land. He led a march to Mousehold Heath in Norwich and fought against government armies. Kett, and his brother William, were eventually arrested and Robert Kett was hanged from Norwich Castle.
Now 450 years later Kett is a local hero and his home town of Wymondham will be holding major celebrations in the summer. Kett's Oak, the tree from which the march allegedly set off from is in the parish of Hethersett and on the former A11. I understand that today it is filled with concrete and is held up by fencing. It would normally have been pulled down years ago but is now of historic value.
One of Kett's sworn enemies was landowner John Flowerdew who lived in Hethersett. It is interesting to note that one of the newer roads in the village is named Flowerdew Close. I'm not sure whether that comes from a wish to record history or from support on behalf of the planners to commemorate a rather unpopular man.
Saturday January 9th
Today was a sad one for the village and the youth football team in particular. In the early hours of the morning one of the Under-17 players was killed. He was walking home to Mulbarton (a village about five miles from Hethersett). The boy (Lee Thompson) had played football in the village for about 6 years.
That made for a tragic day. It was summed up by a drive home from lunch at the King's Head where the gathering storm clouds summed up the dreadful news.
The weather was indeed a mixture of sun and winter showers although the overriding feeling was one of despair and darkness.
Sunday January 10th
A frosty start was followed by bright sunshine. The village looked attractive. Visited the spot where Lee Thompson was killed and it was an unspeakably sad visit that illustrates how fragile life is and how much we should value where we live and the people we share our lives with.
More bouts of unseasonal weather were recorded as the month progressed. A few mornings of frost were countered by periods of mild weather. Late afternoons tended to be dark and dank with the surrounding countryside stark in its flatness.
In the depths of winter the village still has a rather sleepy feel about it. The elderly stay indoors as much as possible although any trip back to the village during the day illustrates what a thriving and busy community there is.
Wednesday January 20th
A sad day for many youngsters and others in the village as we travelled to Mulbarton for Lee Thompson's funeral service.
It was an upbeat celebration of his life but that couldn't detract from the huge sadness of the occasion as he was buried in the churchyard.
At the turn of the Millennium Lee would have been just 18.
The youth football set-up at Hethersett was well represented and again it was decided to hold a minute's silence before Sunday's game.
Thursday January 21st
Over the past 30 years Hethersett has had a village pantomime which not only provides an excellent two and a half hours entertainment but also raises money for local charities.
The panto is held over a period of a week and plays to packed houses at the new Village Hall. I can remember cramming into the old Church Hall in Henstead Road where the tiny stage and cramped conditions made it a real village experience.
At first the pantomime group were reluctant to leave this home but eventually moved to the grander surroundings in 1996.
Some people have been involved in the pantomime since its start and most, if not all, have been written by Duncan Pigg.
Pantomime is a curiously British entertainment. There are just a few storylines with recurrent themes and dance, song, drama, farce and comedy all mixed in.
Since 1970 about £24,480 has been donated from pantomime profits to various organisations. In 1998 £2,200 was divided between the Village Hall, Church Hall, Parish Church Organ Fund, Middle School Swimming Pool, STEPS Project (Autistic Society), Jubilee Youth Club, Methodist Church, Woodside First School Library, Talking Newspaper for the Blind and Accident Rescue Service.
Since its formation the Panto group has performed Sleeping Beauty, Dick Whittington, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aladdin and Cinderella four times; Beauty and the Beast, Babes in the Wood and Mother Goose twice; and Red Riding Hood, Sinbad the Sailor, Robin Hood and Snow White once each.
The 1999 pantomime was Jack and the Beanstalk and took place from Saturday 16th January to Saturday 23rd January.
The starring roles were taken by Deb Wilson (Jack), Lloyd Parfitt (Simple Simon), Barry Foster (Widow Lovejoy), John Freeman (King Harry), June Harrison (Queen Bess), Amy Foster (Princess Rose), Gary Thornton (Giant Rumbletum). The scenery was excellent and very colourful.
Advertisers in the pantomime programme included: Barry Foster decorator, Attractions Unisex Hair Salon, Chris Lewer electrical contractor, King's Head Public House, Sylvia Parfitt Chiropodist, Edwards Pharmacy, Kirsty Lansdell private piano tuition, North Heigham Sawmills Ltd, Sophie Emms Florist, Roger Smith Insurance Consultants.
Friday January 22nd
A drive home from the University of East Anglia leads across country lanes and past Norwich City Football Club's training complex at Colney and onto the old A11. Today the skies were black, but there were indications of the days lengthening again.
Our football club has cancelled its Easter trip to Holland though lack of interest.
The weekly newspaper - the Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury (for which I was once sports editor) ran a story this week on the village pantomime, along with news that Hethersett Old Hall School has secured a £30,000 award from the Wolfson Foundation towards computers and educational software.
Saturday January 23rd
Saturday always brings car parking problems to the village. Scarcely anybody seems to walk into the centre and the problem is a lack of car parking space for all the vehicles. The result is that many drivers leave their vehicles illegally parked on double yellow lines.
Today the sun threatened to come out but never really made it and in the evening the rain came down.
One hundred years ago the village must have been much quieter and more peaceful than today. Certainly there were no computers. Through the wonders of modern science we now receive electronic mail (e-mail). This evening I received correspondence from a gentleman whose friend has just moved into property in Back Lane. He is interested in village history and in particular village ghosts. It is an interesting subject and worth some research.
Sunday January 24th
Sundays in the village are alive with youngsters playing football. Today was bright and dry until the evening when wind and rain took over.
Hethersett Athletic Under-17s dedicated their afternoon match to the memory of Lee Thompson. They beat North Lynn 1-0 in a very hard match. There were celebrations and even relief all round at the end.
Monday January 25th
On New Year's Day I took a photograph of Hethersett Middle School. It was rather unrealistic. The gates were shut and there were no children.
In reality the school is a thriving centre for village life. It has a swimming pool used regularly by a variety of groups and the hall and even classrooms can all be hired.
The school has a number of archive diaries which go back into the last century. One of these refers to the girls section. I was amazed at the trivia included. They seemed pre-occupied with darning and sewing and very little else. I don't think today's pupils would get away with that.
With over 250 pupils the school is now of moderate size for a middle school. The day to day running is down to an excellent staff led by Head Tim Strugnell. Behind the scenes the finance and running of the school is down to the board of governors.
The school consists of four year groups ranging from years four to seven. It can take a maximum of 272 pupils. Some years are at present full, others have vacancies.
Parental choice means that parents can now pick which school to send their children to. Sadly this can mean that at times people move into the village and are not able to send their children to the local school where classes may already be full. This to my mind is not acceptable, but neither is the thought of class sizes growing to unreasonable levels without any control.
The middle school is at present planning a programme of building replacement and improvements designed to take it into the 21st century.
It is only rarely that I have a Monday in the village. Today was such a rare occasion. The village has a slightly strange feeling about it on a weekday. It turned out to be very busy indeed today, but those moving about were either elderly picking their pensions up or mothers with young children. On a weekend walk round the village I would pass numerous people I know. Today was different - they were all strangers.
The day also brought lunch at the King's Head. They are having a new carpet laid at the moment. I can remember going to this pub for a drink way back in the early 1970s well before I knew anything about the village or ever had ideas of living there.
The King's Head is a very welcoming place, particularly in the winter when an open log fire keeps everyone warm. Beer prices continue to rise, however, with a pint now costing around £2.
I received notification today of an archive open day on 23rd February at Hethersett Library where many original and copied documents will be on display. I wonder if anything we are doing in the village at the moment will be on display in 100 years time.
Also today I visited the bottle and magazine banks in the centre of the village. Re-cycling material is a fairly new idea, but the small green receptacles are well used.
Tuesday January 26th
The Methodist Church has a number of groups attached to it. Over the years myself and Anne have been members of a number, although at present I only have a small interest.
Many years ago I was founder member of the Men's Club which meets once a month for discussions, sports evenings, meals and other matters.
Tonight we had a talk on the history of coffee at Grinders. It may be a strange concept to grasp that the national Headquarters of Grinders in this country is in a village such as Hethersett. The reason is simple. The owner of the franchise - Andrew Richardson- was born about two miles away in Great Melton. After spending many years in the USA in the coffee business, he has returned to the UK to set up businesses. Rather than set up an HQ in a large city he decided to return to his roots.
Grinders in Hethersett is mainly the administrative centre but the front showroom doubles up as a coffee bar selling gourmet coffees.
Coffee was first discovered by an Ethiopian goat-herder. Today over 400 billion cups are drunk every year. Grinders takes its coffee beens from around the world. The talk attracted 11 members of the men's club - about twice the usual number.
The February edition of Good News magazine tells us that a Norfolk film archive and chips evening is being held at Hethersett Old Hall School on 5th March. The magazine also poses the questions - In 100 years time what will the residents of Hethersett know about us and the village we live in? The answer is probably a lot more than we know about the residents of 100 years ago.
The beginning of May will bring parish council elections tot he village. I can't say that the present council is very progressive! The magazine is full of dates for the village, illustrating just how many groups exist.
Wednesday January 27th
A governors meeting at the Middle School began discussing far reaching plans to re-furbish and improve accommodation. This could involve re-siting the design and technology block, improving the swimming pool, changing classroom space and re-siting the main offices at the front rather than the side of the building.
The fly in the ointment could be a government ruling that could necessitate the re-constitution of the governing body with more parent-governor representatives.
By and large the remainder of the month alternated between mild and damp weather.
Sunday January 31st
Whilst part of the family take to the football fields on Sundays, Anne keeps up her attendance at the Methodist Church. Tonight there was a special service featuring a number of children. After the service the minister and his wife - the Rev Gerald and Lynne Cole - open up their doors to a number of youngsters aged up to 15 which they call the 999 club. The name comes from the last three digits of their telephone number. This evening the group (which meets every two weeks) was ahead of itself - making early Valentines' cards.
There have been a number of Methodist ministers in the village since we have lived here.
When we first moved here the Rev Brian Dann was the incumbent with his wife Margaret. They subsequently moved to the Newcastle area and were replaced by John and Rosemary Dean who never really settled into the Norfolk way of life which I think was too quiet for them. They moved to Runcorn in Cheshire and were replaced by William and Lynne Booker who were the first to live in the village manse in Richardson Crescent. They eventually moved to Oxford and their place was taken by the Coles.
The church itself holds two services - one in the mornings at 10.30 a.m and one at 6.30 p.m - both of course on Sundays.
Over the years attendance at the services has fluctuated but is currently very healthy. The types of service over the years have varied from the solemn to the modern.
A youth club ran for many years on Friday evenings but closed a few years ago due to lack of people prepared to run it. For a number of years myself and Anne helped at this. Many of the children who attended have long since grown up and I am sure many have children of their own.
The Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury is a free newspaper which circulates in Hethersett. Copy from the village is usually provided by a village correspondent who at the present time is Liz Thetford who lives in Priory Close.
The front page of the edition for January 29th ran a story about pantomime dame Barry Foster who played throughout this year's event despite having chopped the top off a finger by catching it in a door at rehearsals.
Apparently it didn't hamper him too much apart from the scene where he is supposed to hang out washing on a line. It did prove a problem in his working life, however, as he's a painter and decorator.
The latest edition of the Hethersett Handbook has been published by the parish council. It is a directory of Hethersett organisations and businesses and includes maps. It acts mainly as a contacts list, but also gives another idea of the large number of groups which exist in the village and also an insight into village life at this turn of the century.
So here are some facts and figures for posterity.
Hethersett Parish Council meets on the fourth Monday of each month in the Humphrey Back Room of the village hall. The chairman is Dr Geoff Brownsey who lives in Park Close. The parish clerk is Mrs Diana Dring who lives in Barford - a village about five miles away.
The village doctors at Hethersett surgery are Drs Signy, Beeby, Press and Morris.
The dental surgery is situated in Great Melton Road and the branch library is in Queen's Road. It has storytime sessions for under-5s on the second Wednesday of the month from 2.15 to 2.45 p.m. The library itself opens on Mondays from 2.30 to 7.30, on Wednesdays from 10 a.m to 1 p.m and 2 to 5 p.m, on Thursdays from 2.30 to 7.30 and on Saturdays from 10 a.m until 1 p.m.
There are a number of village charities. The Hethersett Parochial Charity assists those in need, hardship or distress and clerk to the trustees is Mrs S. Clarke from Lynch Green. The Caroline Lindley Trust gives further education grants for young people of the parish aged between 18 and 25.
The Hethersett and District Nursing Association assists those who are sick and in financial need and Hethersett and District Lions provide help to the community as a whole.
On the publications front, the local correspondent for the Wymondham and Attleborough Mercury and the Eastern Evening news is Liz Thetford, whilst the Good News Parish Magazine is organised by a number of people through the parish church.
Community and support groups include Age Concern, the Friendly Club, the Good Companions Club for the Over-50s, the Happy Circle, Meals on Wheels organised by the Women's Royal Voluntary Service, Books on Wheels also organised by the WRVS and a Pensioners Association. A Millennium committee has been set-up to co-ordinate Millennium celebrations/commemorations in the village and there is a voluntary services co-ordinator who recruits volunteers and liaises with voluntary groups to offer help and support to the community.
The handbook lists a large number of sports and recreation clubs. These include:
Badminton (Thursday evenings at the High School), Bowls (Wednesday and Saturday afternoons from May to September at the Memorial Playing Fields and also at Hethersett Social Club), Cricket (at the Memorial Playing Field from April to September), Cycle Speedway (Hethersett Hawks at the Memorial Playing Field on Tuesdays at 6 p.m from April to October), football (in a variety of guises at the high school, middle school and memorial playing field on Sundays), table tennis (Village Hall on Wednesdays from 4 to 6 p.m for those aged 8 to 16), swimming (adult education courses for family and adult classes at Hethersett Middle School and Old Hall School). There are also aquafit classes.
As far as recreation areas are concerned there is the Memorial Playing Field and an all weather pitch at the village hall which is available for tennis, basketball and five-a-side football although it has to be said that it has been built in the wrong dimensions and is not used for any of these purposes much to the annoyance of the sports clubs who were not consulted before it was built.
There are numerous halls and buildings for hire in the village including the church hall in Henstead Road, the Jubilee Youth Club in Back Lane, Hethersett Middle School which offers rooms, hall, swimming pool and playing fields, Hethersett High School, Old Hall School which lets out a sports hall, barn, swimming pool and tennis courts, the Methodist School Room and the Village Hall in Back Lane which has a large hall, committee room, stage, kitchen and bar facilities.
In addition to the above the high school tennis courts are left open for village use free of charge throughout the summer.
Equal opportunities, sexism - all buzz words of the late 20th century where it is politically incorrect to have groups excluding people by race or gender.
Nevertheless in a village like Hethersett, the past is still in play. There are several groups in the village for women. These include the Mothers' Union which meets on the fourth Monday of the month at the Church Hall in Henstead Road, the women's fellowship which meets on alternate Thursdays in the Methodist Schoolroom, the women's meeting which meets on alternate Thursdays in the Baptist Church in Henstead Road and the Women's Institute which meets on the third Monday of the month in the Methodist Schoolroom.
Continuing the trawl through the village organisations, there are a number catering for mums with young children including the Mother and Baby Group on Fridays in the Church Hall, the Under-5s which meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays in St Remigius Church and offer worship and activities for the under-5s and their carers. The Chimes Pre-School music group meets in the Methodist Schoolroom during term time. First Steps for toddlers, babies and parents meet for play and chat at the Village Hall on Fridays. Next Steps is for those from 18 months and takes place on Tuesdays.
The Playgroup for those aged 2 1/2 to 5 meet on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings in the Methodist Schoolroom whilst the Ducklings Activity Group for those aged 2 to 2 1/2 meets on Wednesdays. Little Fishes meet on the first and third Tuesdays in the Methodist Schoolroom for under-5s. In addition there is a baby sitting circle which organises mutual babysitting without the need to pay and a parent and baby clinic which meets twice monthly in the Methodist Schoolroom.
Youth organisations (all of which meet in the Scout and Guide Hut off Queen's Road) include Rainbow Guides (girls 5 to 7 years of age), 1st Hethersett Brownies, 4th Hethersett Brownies, 1st Hethersett Guides, 1st Hethersett Beavers (boys of pre-cubs age), Woodhall Cubs, Cromwell Cubs and Scouts. The Jubilee Youth Club in Back Lane opens its doors to Seniors (aged 14 and above) on Mondays and Wednesdays and Juniors (12 to 14) on Fridays.
There are a whole host of leisure groups including the following: Art and Craft group, Hethersett Choral Society, the St Remigius Church Guild, Hethersett Society, Hethersett and District Horticultural Society, Jigsaw Library and the Pantomime Group.
Then there is Probus which is a club for retired professional and business people, the Hethersett branch of the Royal British Legion, the Tuesday Club, the Hethersett branch of the Workers Educational Association (WEA) and a Yoga group.
I would like at this point to list the roads in the village:
Admirals Way, Aldborough Loke, Ambleside, Anson Close, Arneside, Ash Close, Back Lane, Bailey Close, Benbow Close, Birch Road, Bucaneer Way, Buckingham Drive, Cann's Lane, Cartmel, Cedar Road, Central Close, Central Crescent, Childs Road, Churchfields, Collingwood Close, Coniston Close, Cromwell Close, Curson Close, Deacon Drive, Drake Close, Exmouth Close, Firs Road, Flint House Gardens, Flowerdew Close, Glengarry Close, Grasmere, Grenville Close, Grove Road, Great Melton Road, Haconsfield, Hall Close, Harman Close, Harmer Close, Harvey Close, Hawk Close, Henstead Road, Howes Close, Hubbards Loke, Hughes Court, Jaguar Road, Karen Close, Kendal Close, Ketteringham Lane, Kett's Close, Lakeland Way, Linden Drive, Lindley Road, Long View, Lynch Green, Lyngate Close, Malthouse Road, Marion Roberts Court, Meadow Close, Melton Court, Mill Close, Mill Road, Muriel Kenny Court, Myrtle Road, Nelson Close. New Road, Nimrod Close, Oak Close, Old Norwich Road, Orchard Way, Park Close, Park Drive, Pond Close, Priory Road, Queen's Road, Recreation Road, Richardson Crescent, Rowan Gardens, Shop Lane, South Croft, St. David's Road, St. John's Close, Stuart Close, The Crescent, Thirlmere, Trout Beck, Ullswater Drive, Vulcan Close. West Croft, Whitegates Close, Woods Close.
Monday February 1st
One of the highlights of the month for me is the regular Music Club. It is an informal meeting of six of us. We take it in turns to host and basically the evening consists of refreshment, but mainly just listening to music. The group was originally an offshoot of the Methodist Church Men's Club. Each year that group had a favourite music evening and that developed into the music club.
Now everything from ballads to blues, classical to punk, modern to jazz is played. Tonight's meeting was at the home of John Freeman in Mill Road. Those attending were John, myself, Ron Baker, Chris Watt, Ray Hannent and Kim Sergeant.
Chris runs his own disco as well as being a full time teacher at Hethersett Middle School. Kim has just moved from the village to Barnham Broom.
On this particular evening records were played by the likes of Gomez, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Pat Metheny, Eric Clapton, The Clash, Meatloaf, Simon and Garfunkel, Neil Young, Beach Boys, Robbie Williams, Simply Red, U2, Tom Waits, John Lennon and the Lightning Seeds. It is usually around midnight before we wend our way home.
Tonight the village was featured on the front page of the Eastern Evening news - a daily evening paper circulating in and around the Norwich area.
This particular story - deemed to be the most important of the day - surrounded a loss of identity for some householders in Malthouse Road. It ran.
Angry residents of a Hethersett road are today demanding a rethink after discovering the number is up for their old addresses.
The problem is that six houses will have their numbers changed because of new development.
Residents have called for a new street to be set up for the new bungalows. The builder of the new development is supporting the residents.
The sub heading for the story was "Residents in a two-and-eight over changes". Two and eight is rhyming slang for state.
Tuesday February 2nd
Local traders seem to be using mail shots more and more to advertise their services. Today we received a poster advertising Sophie's Florist in Great Melton Road. Sophie's will be open from 9 a.m until 1 p.m on Valentine's Day (14th February) which this year falls on a Sunday.
Sophie's is a very small shop situated close to the junction of Great Melton Road and Mill Road. It opens between 9 a.m and 5 p.m on Mondays to Fridays with a one hour break for lunch at 1 p.m and on Saturday's it is open straight through from 9 until 5. It is still a quaint old English custom for business premises to shut for an hour at lunchtime.
Sophie's caters for flowers for weddings, birthdays, funerals and also sells plants, balloons, gifts and silk and dried flowers. The leaflet had a key ring attached to the back and reminded us all that Mothering Sunday is this year on 14th March.
Friday February 5th
On the way back to the village around lunchtime I passed Kett's Oak on the Old A 11 and noticed it is being lopped. Rumour has it that the tree died many years ago and is now filled with concrete. It will be an important landmark this year which is the 450th anniversary of the rebellion.
Meanwhile 450 years later at Park Farm Hotel they held one of their Mellow Moments evenings which consist of dimmed lights, soft music and people messing around in the swimming pool!
Saturday February 6th
They used to call them ceilidh. Now they are simply barn dances. Tonight Cringleford Tennis Club held one in Hethersett Village Hall. We have attended numerous of these dances in the village going back many years. Over the years we have also organised a number for various events which is unremarkable except for the fact that I really do not enjoy them.
On the way home from Norwich at about 5 p.m we noticed flames coming from the area of Ketteringham Lane. It appeared to be a house fire, although my first thoughts were that it was tyre depot across the by-pass. There had been a fire there a few months previous. When we drove past the scene at 7.45 p.m the fire brigade were still there and the fire seemed to be continuing. On the way back at 11.30 p.m the road was closed.
During the day I wrote a piece for the local newspaper about three Hethersett Athletic footballers who will be playing in a prestigious tournament in Texas in March. I still write the occasional piece for the newspaper - particularly when one of our sons is involved!
The three - Chris Steward, Ben Watt and Scott Newstead - will be playing for the Hewett School in an international tournament for the Dallas Cup at the end of March.
The boys are all close friends and are actively looking for sponsorship at the present time.
Sunday February 7th
This was the coldest day of the year so far by a long way. A biting wind made it miserable despite bright sunshine as well.
I got thoroughly cold running the line for the Under-15s friendly at the high school which saw them beat Wymondham 4-0 with one of their best displays of the season.
It was noticeable that hockey goals at the high school have been wrecked. The wind has been strong but it certainly looks more like vandalism.
It seems incredible to me that yobs with no interests can decide that other people aren't going to enjoy themselves or have access to facilities. The football nets are also torn and this could have been caused by a knife. Vandalism isn't a great problem in the village, but it does exist.
Evenings in the village often see groups of youngsters hanging around. Most are just meeting to chat, but there are still the mindless few who want to cause damage.
Being a Sunday it seems fitting at this point to list the churches in the village and their times of services.
As already mentioned the present parish church was begun in 1320 and dedicated to St Remigius (438-533), the great Bishop of Rheims. Remigius de Hethersett, a priest who also participated in the building of Hingham Church, may have suggested the dedication in honour of his name-saint.
St Remigius is a magnificent building set off the old A11 road and opposite the modern Steepletower development. Sunday services are Holy Communion at 8 a.m, morning worship at 10.30 a.m and evening worship at 6.30 p.m. Sunday celebration is held on the third Sunday of the month at the middle school.
The Methodist Church has services at 10.30 a.m and 6.30 p.m with a Sunday School in the morning.
The Baptist Church has services at 10.45 a.m and 6.30 p.m.
Early evening it begins to snow which is scarcely a surprise. By mid evening it has already slackened off, however.
A walk or drive through the village fails to show all the businesses available. They include: Alma Antique Restorers, Aromatherapy/Reflexology, Barclays Bank, Halifax Building Society, Ye Olde Bakery, Hethersett Tool Hire, A.E Forster Builders, Hethersett Butchers, Hethersett Car Centre, Nick Fulcher Coachtrimmer, K.R Gray Carpenter, Proclean (Eastern), Hethersett Cattery, Swinton and Co Chartered Accountants, Edwards Pharmacy, Sylvia Parfitt Choropodist, Ronald Wales Chiropodist, Grinders Coffee, Gilbey Crafts, Yvonne School of Dance, Hethersett Dental Laboratories, Hethersett DIY Stores, June Robinson Dressmaker, Juliet's Sewing Service, Chris Lewer Electrical Contractor, Harvey's Autos, Cliff Dixon Finance, R.J. Litten and Partners Independent Financial Advisors, G. W Woodbine Fish and Chips, Quilland Furniture and Gifts, Sophie's Florists, Top It All Hat Hire, Attractions Hair Salon, Rosalind Bunn Hairdresser, The March Hair, Park Farm Hotel, Norfolk Insurance Services, St Margaret's Pet Centre, F.S Harris and Associates Marine Surveyors, Rockinghorse Day Nursery, Greenacre Office Equipment, David Whitworth painter and decorator, Easilt Impressed Promotions, Hethersett Picture Framing Service, Bob Clayton Heating and Plumbing Services, Hethersett Post Office, Fransham Press, King's Head Public House, Queen's Head Public House, G. Browne Repairs, Hethersett Hall Home for the Elderly, the Business Base, Woodcote Sheltered Housing Complex, Dillons Supermarket, Hethersett Tailoring Services, Abb Cabs Taxi Service.
Monday February 8th
Hethersett had no snow overnight unlike other parts of Norfolk which seem to have hard quite large falls. Getting out of the village was easy, getting into Norwich was not.
The fire we passed on Saturday was in a disused and derelict barn in Ketteringham Lane. Firefighters were called to the scene at 5.10 p.m and used three pumps and a water carrier from fire headquarters. The cause of the fire is being treated as suspicious.
Tuesday February 9th/Wednesday February 10th
Two days of sub zero temperatures and snow. There was a strange sight driving out of the village today. On the left side of the old A11 the fields were green and had absolutely no snow on them, whilst on the right they were white. I'm wondering whether it had anything to do with the wind patterns.
The remainder of the month consisted of seemingly equal amounts of sunshine, wind and rain, but little snow.
February is possibly the drabbest month of the year. Spring still seems a long way off and the turn of the year seems very remote.
School half-term comes and goes and the long haul towards Easter is underway.
Many organisations also seem dormant. The summer fete season is distant although a few jumble sales have been taking place.
Tuesday February 23rd
The village library doesn't usually open on Tuesdays, but today it hosted a display of village archives put together by village archivist Bill Reekie, who just happens to be my neighbour.
The archives included census, maps, documents, histories and press cuttings. The village seems to be very aware of its past and heritage as we reach the new millennium. The archive is a rich source of information. Sadly it is of no use for my attempts at tracing my ancestry as my forebears came from other parts of the county of Norfolk.
The hint of summer beckons in the form of a note from Hethersett Cricket Club which came through our door this week. Net practices have been arranged at Easton Sports Centres in March and April.
This year the club has entered two teams in the Norfolk League which means two matches every Saturday from the beginning of May to the end of August. There will also be matches every Sunday as well as evening league, friendlies and knockout competitions and a national under-15 competition.
The cricket club has been in existence since 1860 (more about its history at a later date). All the male members of the Steward family have played for the club at some time in the past 10 years and Matthew still plays regularly.
The parish magazine for March (it's always a month ahead of itself) has more interesting articles reflecting village life, although its coverage of events might actually reflect a slightly gentler pace of life entrenched somewhere about 20 years ago.
Nevertheless it does reflect many of the current matters featured in village life along with details of groups that meet in the village.
Churches Together focuses on different areas of the village at informal meetings on the second Wednesday of each month. This takes the form of prayer groups.
In the funerals' section of the magazine I noticed the name Jack Halsey who I seem to recollect was a leading light in the labour party when we first came to the village. He was also secretary of the Royal British Legion.
The announcement section tells us of the impending retirement of Dr Signy at the end of April. He has been a doctor at the village surgery for 31 years. Coming events include a Norfolk film archive and chips evening on 5th March at Old Hall School and St Remigius Church is to be decorated for Easter. The magazine also points out that parish council elections take place on Thursday 6th May. Nominations have to be in by 8th April. I won't be applying.
The Tidy Britain group are running an anti-litter campaign throughout April. I doubt whether it will make any difference in the village where the amount of litter sometimes borders on the unacceptable, although it does appear to have improved in the last few years.
Other news includes a review of bus services to the village with the bus company meeting parish councillors to discuss problems with the service. That surrounds buses not turning up at all, turning up full or occasionally breaking down.
It looks as if the village will have a new re-cycling unit at the Jubilee Youth Club car park in Back Lane.
In September 1993 the former post office in Great Melton Road was taken over by the MacMillan Cancer Charity as a charity shop, selling clothes, books and many other goods. Since its opening the shop has raised an impressive £110,000 - over £20,000 a year.
Village plans for the millennium are also progressing and diary dates for the year 2000 include a fete and procession on Saturday 24th June, a children's party on Saturday 15th July and a millennium ball on the same day.
The parish magazine looks back at news from 75 years ago. The latest edition featured the Hethersett Nursing Association whereby parishioners can pay a small weekly subscription to have nurse's services free. Membership is divided into two classes with class one paying 1d a week and class two paying 1.5d a week. Class one includes labourers, gardeners, carpenters, bricklayers and smallholders and class two bailiffs, stewards, teachers, shopkeepers, farmers, engineers and mechanics.
Back on the millennium theme, Churches Together is supplying every household with a candle to light in the year 2000. Volunteers are being sought to deliver them.
Hethersett Parochial Charities have expressed their concern about the elderly during bad weather. They have appealed for people to keep a special watch on the elderly and infirm to ensure they are keeping warm and are not short of fuel. In certain cases the charity pays fuel costs.
This year's village pantomime - Jack and the Beanstalk - raised £2,130 for charity. The following donations were made: Eastern Evening News MacMillan Cancer Relief campaign £600; Jubilee Youth Club £300; New Village Hall £250; Church Hall £250; Accident Rescue Service £200; Norfolk Association for the Disabled £200, BEARS group for the disabled £200 and Little Melton Church Audio System.
Saturday February 27th
One of the most popular evenings in the village is Quiz and Chips. Quiz evenings have been the in thing for the past five years. The essence of the idea is to take teams of up to eight people for a quiz on a variety of subjects. The evenings are usually in aid of a specific group or charity and feature a fish and chip supper.
Tonight there was such an event at the Middle School organised by the Parent-Teacher Association and it raised £300. The questions were set by Roger Morgan and Mike Anderson who compile a number of such events each year. Sixteen teams took part in a very enjoyable evening. Modesty prevents me from announcing who the winners were.
Sunday February 28th
February went out with a bang. The morning started bright and reasonably warm with signs of spring in the air with crocuses and daffodils out. During the day, however, the wind whipped up and by late afternoon there was heavy rain and the temperature dipped alarmingly.
Even more alarming was the sight of two fully grown men trying to fly a kite on the playing field. They were both lifted off their feet by the power of the kits in the wind, but insisted on hanging on. This caused damage to the cricket square and was a very silly undertaking.
March to June
The weather may not change dramatically, but the village comes out of its winter hibernation as spring approaches.
There have been a number of problems with vandalism during this period. The Methodist Church has been broken into on a number of occasions leading to the belief that someone has got hold of a key.
The re-cycling bins next to the main village shops were destroyed by arson but the culprits were not caught. Despite all this the village is a relatively safe and peaceful place to live.
The period between March and June was quite a sad one with the deaths of two well known residents - Tony Curson and Frank Ong. Frank was well known for his work with Norfolk Lawn Tennis Association.
There was the usual round of barn dances (for the High School), quizzes (for the First School) and social events and group meetings.
All three schools were very active in the community with a full range of social and fund-raising events.
This period also saw the elections for the parish council although the word election is incorrect because there were insufficient candidates and so appointment was automatic.
Sadly there still seems to be insufficient numbers of people willing to put themselves forward to serve the community. Like many villages there is a strong band of people who give their time and energy to organising groups and raising funds. For every one of these, however, there are 100 who are content to do nothing.
This leads to the complaint that the village is run by "the same old people" which isn't surprising as they are the only ones prepared to undertake the various functions.
Having said that public participation can be time consuming and demanding as I'm only too aware. It can also lead to criticism which has to be taken squarely on the chin. I have always believed that if you believe strongly in something you should have the courage of your convictions.
TONY CURSON 1928-1999
Tony Curson was one of the best known residents of the village and totally immersed himself in school and village life. He was fully involved in parish church activities for about 50 years. He was a church warden for many years and was treasurer and chairman of numerous church committees.
He was also a long standing parish councillor and vice-chairman at the time of his death.
Over the years he helped backstage with the annual village pantomime and was also involved with the Memorial Playing Field Committee, the parochial charity. He was a former chairman of the Middle School governing body and vice-chairman of Hethersett Choral Society.
Tony held just about every position within Hethersett Cricket Club having notched up over 22,000 runs, taken over 2,500 wickets and held nearly 700 catches.
He died whilst mowing the cricket square on May 10th.
The head teacher of Woodside First School - Vivienne Horobin - has announced her retirement at the end of the school year after 15 years in charge at the school. The school held its annual summer fete on 12th June with all the usual stalls and attractions.
There was no need for an election for the parish council on May 6th as insufficient candidates put themselves forward. As a result the following were elected uncontested: George Beckford, Elizabeth Capleton, Tony Curson, Liz Hovey, Nick Jarvis, Cyril Murfin, Fred Watkins, Bridget Williamson and Colin Wilson. The council is undertaking a programme of replacement for the old concrete street lighting columns.
The annual meeting of the Jubilee Youth Club took place on 23rd June. Over the past year, membership has increased with over 50 youngsters using the facilities two nights per week. There are plans to extend the youth club.
George Beckford was elected chairman of the parish council at the annual meeting with Nick jarvis as vice-chairman. Jim Bartram and Malcolm Goldspink were co-opted to fill vacancies. At this time one vacancy exists with the death of Tony Curson. This will be filled with an election on July 22nd.
There is still a possibility of turning a field opposite the King's Head into a village green. Several letters of support have been received by the parish council and the matter has been referred to the landowner.
As already mentioned, Dr Michael Signy retired from the Hethersett practice after 31 years as a GP. He was presented with a computer from patients, staff and partners.
The set-up at the Memorial Playing Field Committee has changed with Jim Bartram as chairman, Mel Bradfield secretary and other members being: Geoff Brownsey, Alan Capleton, Peter Salter, Simon Thorne and Paul White. The group are looking into the refurbishment of the pavilion which never seems to have been finished. Litter, broken bottles and glass have been strewn across the cricket pitch by youths and this seems to be an on-going problem. Also a horse has been seen exercising on the field and dog fouling is another problem.
On the sporting side, the main Hethersett Sunday football team has folded. Most of the players representing the side came from outside the village.
It is expected their pitch will now be used by the expanding Hethersett Athletic Club which will be running teams at Under-11, Under-12, Under-13, Under-14, Under-15, Under-16, girls Under-13 and two adult sides for the coming season. The new adult side has been elected to the Norwich Sunday League Division 4B.
The club will be using the Memorial Playing Field as its main base and the village social club as its base for meetings.
The club held an emotional presentation evening on may 8th at the Village Hall attracting over 120 people. The various teams within the club presented their trophies, but the main presentation of the evening was the Lee Thompson Memorial Trophy given in memory of Lee. It was awarded to the player making an outstanding contribution to the club. It went to Under-17 captain Chris Steward for his outstanding leadership during the previous season. Needless to say there was scarcely a dry eye in the house.
The club is holding a series of barbecues at the social club during the summer.
Another sports club has been hit by vandalism. The playing field bowls club has had its water pump stolen.
Of an even more serious nature was an armed robbery at Dillons store in the village centre in June. Fortunately a Suffolk man was quickly caught for the crime.
Former parish councillor and clerk to the council Rosemary Watts has left the village to take over the post of Church Tourism Co-ordinator for the diocese of Lincoln.
Looking forward, the Millennium Committee is planning a special party in the village hall on 31st December. It is likely to include a disco, live television coverage and a children's room. All children living in the parish under the age of 12 will receive a free millennium mug. The mug includes the logo of the Hethersett Millennium group and also images of Ketts Oak and the village sign. Additional mugs are being made for sale to those over 12.
Hethersett Choral Society is looking for new members for their autumn season when they will be working on Handel's Messiah for a concert early in the new millennium.
Another well known village resident died in June. Frank Ong was 92 years of age. Frank will be remembered for his great service to Norfolk tennis over many decades.
There is news of another new club in the village. Owner of the Tool Hire business, Peter Hoult, has started Hethersett Cycling Club. It is designed to cater for all ages, groups and abilities and aims to provide regular bike maintenance clinics, regular meets and rides, access to county and national routes, links and events, shared use of equipment, organised competitions, orienteering and expeditions, proficiency training for juniors and discounted deals on cycles and spares. The first organised ride was on Friday 25th June - a light three mile saunter round the village. This was followed by a longer 12 to 14 mile ride along tracks and minor roads.
The branch library has come into the computer age with the launch of an Internet connection available to the public at a charge of £1.80 for 30 minutes.
On June 23rd and 24th pupils at Hethersett Middle School put on an excellent variety show which included song, comedy and dance as well as sketches from the London musical Cats.
JULY
July turned out to be a very warm month indeed with plenty of unbroken spells of hot weather. Numerous events took place in the village and it is only possible on these pages to give a general feel of what is going on. I have to apologise for leaning towards the groups that I am involved with, but that is only natural.
A new newspaper was launched in July. I use the word "newspaper" loosely. It is actually no more than a small glossy advertising sheet issued monthly by Eastern Counties Newspapers. It has a scattering of village stories which have been taken from other sources. In other words any copy that is sent in to the editors. It can never be a true reflection of the village because submissions are the only things printed and the editors make little attempt to get to the heart of the village.
The front page of the first edition features Hethersett Dumplings pre-school playgroup which has been awarded a grant of £1,420 from the National Lotteries Charity Board. This follows on a good Ofsted (Office of Standards in Education) report in January. The grant will be used to fund the building of two new sheds to house toys and equipment. The introduction of a minimum wage and paid holiday for staff has meant little spare cash.
The newspaper also marks the retirement of Vi Redington as head of Hethersett Old Hall School.
There are four schools in the village and two of the heads retired at the end of term. Vivienne Horobin also decided to call it a day at Woodside First School.
The following tribute appeared to Vi Redington in the press.
"The headmistress of independent girls school Hethersett Old Hall School has retired after almost 17 years in the post.
Victoria Redington presented her final annual report to a large audience at the school's speech day this month.
The annual leavers' ball rounded off the day, with many girls attending to say their own farewells to Mrs Redington.
She has been a representative on the Girl Schools Association, ISIS and the Boarding Schools Association. She is also on an independent schools committee which is working with the Government to develop national quality assessments for UK boarding schools.
Mrs Redington will be succeeded by Janet Mark, currently head of girls school St Andrew's, Bedford. Mrs Mark is a modern languages graduate of London University and has taught in the maintained and independent sectors.
Elsewhere in the new publication the village middle school is featured extensively. Articles are included on the school's Indian life day, the variety show and also on the school's attempts to raise money for the Wildlife Trust.
"Hethersett Middle School children put on a variety show to sell-out audiences of parents, friends and children. The acts included dancing, opera singing, recitations, instrumentalists and choir. Highlights of the show were Rohan and Aditi Chitale and their Jive dancing and Year Seven's selections from the musical Cats. This involved over 60 of the Year 7 children who performed four dances and a choral poem. The dances were put together during PE lessons and arose out of a study of TS Eliot's cat poems."
Year Six children from the school held a special day as a finale to their work on the history and geography of India including religion, culture and music.
The children dressed in Indian clothes and were served an Indian meal at lunchtime consisting of vegetable curry, rice, naan breads, poppadoms, yoghurt, onion baaji and Bombay mix. Other activities included a slide show given by Terry George, a parent at the school, about her travels through India and Kiran Chitale, also a parent at the school, showed various Indian artefacts and spoke about Indian dances. Mrs Chitale also demonstrated how to put on a sari.
Visitors from a Norwich Indian restaurant talked about traditional Indian cooking and their Muslem beliefs. The children performed Indian musical compositions and acted out traditional Indian myths and legends.
For a number of years some residents have been trying to get a one-way system introduced into Cann's Lane. This is a very narrow entrance/exit from the old Norwich Road which is also obscured from view. To my knowledge there have been no accidents there, but it is still thought to be a dangerous corner.
The Fire Brigade are concerned at problems that could be caused if this is made one-way, however. It is also difficult to decide which direction a one-way flow would operate in. Whichever way the traffic flows will create more traffic using the narrow Norwich Road-Queen's Road junction. The parish council has agreed not to create a one-way system but to recommend to the Highway Authority that a 20 mph speed limit be introduced with a stop sign at the Norwich Road end of Cann's Lane. They are also to ask for a mirror in order to improve visibility at the junction.
The council has received no nominations for the parish council following the death of Tony Curson. There seems to be a general apathy in the village towards public duty. At the beginning of the month the annual parents evening at the Middle School where the governors report on the past year was attended by just eight parents out of a possible 500 or so.
Plans to turn land opposite the King's Head into a village green seem to be stuttering. The agent for the owner of the land has said his client would prefer the field to remain in agricultural use. It is intended to review the matter annually although it is difficult to see how an area of land on the edge of the village can provide any sort of focal point.
The village hall committee has turned down the idea of an additional recycling centre in the village because it felt the village hall is not an appropriate site.
Getting to the parish church can be a hazardous process for pedestrians. Now the parish council is supporting the idea of improved access to St Remigius on the B1172. It has been agreed that the bus stop needs to be moved.
The annual parish church fete took place on 3rd July in the Rectory Gardens. It raised £782 for general church funds. The Christian Aid collection in the village raised £1,025.59.
There is news on millennium celebrations in the village. The Millennium Committee is planning a new year's party in the village hall which is likely to include a disco, live television coverage, a children's room, a beacon and food. The committee is also considering the commissioning of a stained glass panel to commemorate the millennium and this will be mounted in a public building. To this end a public slide show is being organised on 14th September at the village hall.
One of the major events in the village during July took place on the High School/Middle School complex on the 25th. The first ever Hethersett Athletic five-a-side funday attracted football teams from throughout Norfolk with 66 teams taking part and over 160 games of football being played.
The event raised £1,700 for club funds. Teams from the village found the competition tough with only the girls team reaching the final where they were beaten 2-0 by a team from Cambridge United.
Members of the Under-16s boys and girls teams went on a sponsored ghost walk of Norwich and then slept the night in the supposedly haunted Maddermarket Theatre. No ghosts were spotted but the night raised money for a new strip for the coming season.
AUGUST
The latest edition of the Hethersett Mercury carried a tribute to Vivienne Horobin to mark her 15 years as head of Woodside First and Nursery School.
Several presentations were made to her at the end of term including a steamer chair, picnic hamper and cut glass decanters. Ninety children from the village Middle School who were former pupils at Woodside, walked to the school as a special gesture to say goodbye.
Twenty eight children went on a summer safari at the village library. The children enjoyed stories and activities on a jungle theme. Aged between five and eight they made parrot and crocodile bookmarks, wild animal cards and a large giraffe collage.
Long serving parish councillor Elizabeth Capleton has resigned from the council after 20 years service through ill health. This leaves two vacancies on the body.
After more than two years' negotiation, the village will be getting a second recycling centre. The village hall management committee has agreed to the siting of a centre on the car park. This has been supported by South Norfolk District Council.
Over the years there has been controversy over parents parking to drop children off at Woodside First School. Now the Memorial Playing Field Committee has agreed in principle for parents to park cars with access to the rear of the school via a new footpath. The idea of enlarging and resurfacing the car park has to be referred to the charity commission.
The village is applying for a 50 mph speed limit on the main B1172 road. It is also hoped that the Steepletower bus stop will be improved. A path on the church side of the B1172 is to be uncovered and made usable. The problem of the Cann's Lane/Norwich Road junction was also raised. Raising the surface of the entry point either by kerbs or speed bumps could provide a solution to traffic problems.
The parish council is to produce its own newsletter following the publication of the Hethersett Mercury. It is felt the contents of such a newsletter would be unrestricted and not subjected to newspaper editorial constraints. The publication will start in September.
SEPTEMBER
The first of the parish council's quarterly newsletters hit the doormats this month. There are four candidates for the two vacancies on the parish council - Stephanie Clarke, Steve Fulford, Charlotte Land and Russell Turner.
The third phase of replacement of 45 of the concrete street lighting columns in the village has been completed. The final phase to replace the remaining columns will take place next year.
A special Hethersett Clubs and Societies Event to showcase groups in the village will take place at the Village Hall on 25th September. This will give residents the chance to meet representatives of clubs and societies to find out more about their activities and membership details.
There is the distinct possibility of a village appraisal survey being carried out to find out residents' views on the village and its future.
The newsletter lists the functions of the parish council, which are as follows:
Making recommendations on local planning applications, the District Council development plan, road and transport measures, the new hospital and environmental matters.
Maintaining 216 streetlights in the village, supplying dog and litter bins, noticeboards, public seats, the village sign and cutting some of the verges and hedges.
Supporting and funding the parish constable scheme for the village.
Assisting local organisations by providing grants and making donations to bodies such as the Wymondham CAB and Accident Rescue.
Supporting the Youth Club, instigating a youth forum and developing a youth council.
At this point my diary for the year 1999 was discontinued. I hope that this gives a flavour of just some of the things happening in the village at the turn of the century.